Scarlet
by TheMangoYeti
Summary: When Gina Johnson is brought back from the brink of death to serve humanity and defeat wayward monsters, she allies herself with the Hero Association to take them down.
1. Chapter 1

"So, have you decided what college you wish to attend?" My counselor asks, as I nod, holding up the image I printed off, with the information below it.

"I want to attend the University of A-City, sir," I answer. "I know the Main Continental language by heart, so communicating won't be hard."

My mother was from the Main Continent's A-City, so she had raised me and my three other brothers in a bilingual household. She had given me many things in life, such as motherly TLC, but also ass whoopings if I didn't try my hardest or take the turkey out of the freezer to thaw for Thanksgiving. Physically, she had given me her sharp grey eyes, button nose, small mouth, short height (a whopping 5'1"!) and plump lips; while my dad had given me his dark red hair, pale skin, freckles, and a burning hatred for rainstorms.

Mostly because as a child he told me it was God peeing when it rained, so I would always make sure I never got caught in a rainstorm. Thanks for that, Dad.

Our family lived on a small tropical island a to the west of the Main Continent, a common tourist place. We lived on the opposite side of the tourist island half, and were our own country under 'America.' It was constantly belittled for not being apart of the MC, and everyone thought we were a bunch of savages running around. In all honesty, they can think whatever, since their tourism is giving all of us money for our life.

"And you want to be a veterinarian, correct?" He asks, flipping through my files, peering over his cracked lenses.

"Yeah, that's the plan," I answer, giving a nod. "My uncle is a professor there, so he can help me get into the school."

The guidance counselor peered over his lenses at me, eyes stern. "Gina, you do realize that the University of A-City has a 30% acceptance rate, and an even lower one for students outside the Main Continent. They hardly accept students outside, maybe one or two a year."

"I understand, but I really know I can do it," I argue, as he sighs, leaning back in his swivel chair. The ancient thing creaks under his weight, begging him to get his fat, lard-like body off of it.

"Alright, I'll send over your information to the United States Scholarship program and the MC one. I would call your uncle to ask him to talk-you-up so you can get accepted."

"Thank you, sir!" I stand up, giving a quick nod of thanks, before booking it out of the smelly guidance counselor office.

My name is Gina Johnson, a senior at the Marmalade Highschool in Kauai, Hawai'i, and I'm hoping to get in to the University of A-City.

Hopping on my bike, I ride down the hill that my highschool dwelled upon, going over a couple of blocks to get to the clutter of houses where about 1/4 of my grade lived. Our school had a maximum of 200 kids, so everyone knew everyone and nothing was a secret.

Pulling up to my house, I dispatch my bike in the lawn, before running across the street to my cousin's (on my dad's side) house. My mom was the only one of her 4 siblings to immigrate over to the U.S, so my cousins get free tickets over to Kauai (since my dad is a pilot) to visit us.

Hawai'i was something of a touristy place for Main Continenters. We mainly spoke in our own language, and since we were different than the MC's inhabitants we had a hard time going over to their continent, so they mostly visited us.

"Penny! Get your butt out! We're going surfing!" I call out, cupping my hands over my mouth as Penny tumbles out the front door.

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" She replies, running over to me with her bag in hand. If anyone were to see us together they wouldn't believe we were related. While my dad's sister is her mom, her father is a man of Latino and African descent. Penny had a clay skin color with kinky black hair pulled into a tight ponytail. Her dark brows fell over round doe-like dark brown eyes, and she grinned at me, showing off her pearly white teeth.

"What's up, short stuff?" She asks, patting me on the head as I smacked her hand away.

She was also 5'9" and a year younger than me, so she thought this would be another great opportunity to make fun of my short height.

"Not much, bean pole." I stick my tongue out, hopping into the passenger's side of her jeep.

"Baka," she spits out, inserting her keys into the old Jeep as it sputtered to life. She's a sophomore in high school this year, but she owns a car since she works across the island at some restaurant, since it was the only place that wanted to hire a 14 year old cook (at the time). Now that she's turning 16, she's head chef and makes super good food. She's planning on becoming a chef one day, and has always loved cooking. When we were kids, she'd come over to my house and watch my mom make food, so she picked up some Continent cuisine, too. Since she's constantly over at my house, she's picked up verbal Continent (but can't write in it), and I've picked up Spanish (I can probably write in it, since there's no Kanji characters or something similar).

We usually go to the beach in our free time, surfing, running on the beach, swimming, or whatever we feel like. She always had a healthy tan while I was pale as a ghost.

And she also looked better in a bikini than I did, since I look like a 12 year old boy who hasn't hit puberty yet. Damn pancakes!

We drove over there and surfed for a bit, before heading back home to my house for dinner. We ate, then fell asleep, then went to highschool again the next day.

And we repeated this process until-

 **January 31st, 20XX**

"I got accepted! Oh my gods!" I screech as my mom and dad hug me tightly.

"I can't believe they accepted a vegetable like you," my brother, Saburo, grumbles. Sticking my tongue out at him, he flipped me off at an angle my parents wouldn't see.

"Saburo, that's not nice," my mom clucked, "apologize!"

"I'm sorry," he spits out, and I roll my eyes. Saburo was the only brother still left at home at age 13, my other brothers had left the nest already. Ken, the eldest a 25, was over in another island as a celebrity lawyer, and Akio, 19, was at a Marine Base over on O'ahu.

"It's alright, burro," I reply, using the nickname Penny had given him. He winces, and I know I had struck a chord in the dumbass.

Hehe, get it?

"Congrats! College starts in April, so you're graduating early, right?" Penny asks, calmly sipping some pineapple soda at the table.

"Yeah, it does, so I'll be missing Prom. Not like I was going to go, anyway," I replied, "all the guys in my grade are _boke_. I've grown up with them, so there's nothing romantic there/"

"Gina!" My mom gasps, thwacking me on the back of my head. Rubbing the spot, I sigh as my brother laughs like a hyena in the corner. My dad thwacks him on the back of the head with a newspaper, "No laughing at your sister!"

Stifling a giggle, my mom sighs. "Why can't you both be as good as Penny?"

She smirks over her can of soda, obviously loved being praised. I get praised at her house, and she gets praised at mine, so I'll laugh at her later.

* * *

 **February 27th, 20XX**

Shutting off my phone on the airplane over to the Main Continent, I wiggle down in comfort on the seat of the plane. I was going to Main Continent on an overnight flight my Dad had snagged for me last minute, so next week Friday will be the entrance ceremony. The older plane was half-full, with half of it being people coming back to MC or American tourists using Hawaii as their stepping stone. Pulling out my book I had bought at the airport based off the cool sounding name, I looked at the cover.

 _The Legend of the Fighter_

It sounded as ambiguous as the cover was, which was simply a sword with a gloved fist wrapped around it. Flipping open the first page, I was immediately immersed into the storyline. It was about a female fighter under the guise of a man in 1000 AC, and she was a skilled fighter, the best in the entire country. Men wished they were her, women fell at their feet, but no one knew he was actually a she. She pushed back invaders using sword skills and combat skills, and was about to explain her origins-

 _*DING DING*_

A ping had alerted the cabinet members, waking some from their restless sleep. The captain cleared his throat just as the plane hit a bump, and I clutched my armrest.

 _"Hello everyone, it seems there is some turbulence due to an unexpected storm, so please remain seated and calm. Thank you."_

It clicked as the call ended, and I slid open the window next to me. It was pouring torrents rain, pattering annoyingly across the glass and my brow furrowed as I saw lightning in the distance, followed quickly by thunder. The flaps of the wings fluttered frantically, rain dripping off of it quickly.

Not only do I hate rain, but this is unsafe. Leaving the window open, I go back to reading when a large bolt of lightning crashed through the wing. Gasping, the engine on that side slowly stopped spinning as the oxygen masks came crashing down from the ceiling. Others were still sleeping, and the stewardesses were calmly waking people up.

This is not the time to be calm! Taking the oxygen masks and placing one on the child and the mother next to me, I placed mine on before shaking them awake.

"Wh-what's going on?" the child groggily asks, as the pilot finally pressed the alert.

 _*DING DING*_

 _"It seems the right wing of the plane has been struck by lightning, everyone, please remain calm and we will fix the problem. Thank you."_

Rolling my eyes at the stupid captain, I wake up the people in front of me and behind me, alerting them to put on the masks. Someone shrieks, waking up the whole plane and sending them into a frenzy. Grabbing the lifejacket, I loop it around myself, but I don't inflate it yet.

Looking out the window, I had noticed a sheet of metal had slid off the wing, revealing the mechanics under it. Fear settled in a knot under my stomach as another sheet had unhinged itself, barely holding on. The stewardesses tried to calm the passengers, as I unslid the airbag from my mouth, as I scooted out of the seats, running up to the passenger's box. Since my dad was a pilot he taught me how to take control of the situation if needed, and these pilots need to do something!

Bursting into the captain's pit, both of them looked overworked and scared. Both were in their mid 50s, with the one on the left with the nametag 'Johnson' had greying hair, while 'Watanabe' had dark frizzy hair.

"What is going on here? Why are you here?!" Johnson asks, blue eyes trained forward on the scene.

"Sheets of metal have literally come off the wings! We're going down!" I answer, trying to keep myself from lashing out. "Have either of you alerted the Coast Guard, yet?"

"We're a couple of hours out from the Main Continent, and we've alerted the _Kaijō Hoan-chō,_ and we will be crashing." Watanabe calmly answers, "We will have the passengers calmly get off the airplane by boat or sliding off."

I've seen images of plane crashes in water, it literally looks like someone dropped an egg on concrete. There's no way we'd be able to survive the crash into water!

"We need to get out," I affirm, "the moment we hit water we're dead!"

"What would you know? You're not a trained pilot, or else _you'd_ be flying," Johnson spits out, as I look over the window to see the ocean below us.

It's about 60 degrees in the ocean right now since it's February, thank god it won't be freezing cold...but still...

I inhale through my nose, admitting defeat.

"Fine. You all can handle this," I glare at them, "but you all need to fix the issue at hand."

Marching out of the cabin, a stewardess was standing over another one, who appeared to have fainted from shock. Damn, was no one trained here? People were crying, screaming, looking ready to pee their pants.

"Alright, everyone!" I shout, causing all eyes to turn to me, making the plane go silent. "We need to put on our life jackets! Once we get closer to the water we'll need to jump out of the plane!"

"Shouldn't we stay in the plane?" Someone asks, getting murmurs of agreement.

"Once the plane hits the water, it'll be like an egg hitting concrete at thousands of miles per hour. I have a plan! We'll take the inflatable rafts and throw them out into the ocean, where people will inflate them. Then, we will have children jump out of the plane first, or if they're too young we'll have mothers come with them. Then the elderly, then men and women."

"What about women and children first?!" An enraged woman asks.

"People with critical needs will go first, gender doesn't matter here!" I reply, grabbing the inflatable life boat box. There was 4 more. I kick off my socks and shoes, and remove my hoodie. Setting the box down, I look up. "We'll need 3 volunteers, two for each side. I need strong swimmers!"

Surfing has helped me out a lot, so if I can withstand strong waves I can withstand an inflatable raft in the ocean. 3 men stepped up, all looking burly.

"We're from the University of Toyo's swim team, we can help," the biggest says, and I nod, tying my hair into a bun.

"Alright, let's go!" I answer, sliding open the door. Turning back to the crowd as the wind blew in my face, I cleared my throat. "The moment we're in the water, you all need to get ready to jump out!"

We were about fifty feet from the ground, and I jumped in. The air rustled around me, before I crashed into the waves, pulling myself up. The shorts I had on were barely dragging me down, but the shirt was tough. Regardless, I took the inflatable raft, and pulled a cord, making it puff up into life. The other swimmer followed, and soon tons of people jumped out, swimming towards the rafts.

The captain's doors didn't open when the plane hit the water, and parts flew everywhere.

Grabbing the raft, I push it by an incoming wave that pushed them far from the plane's parts so they wouldn't get hit, and the other swimmers followed suit. Turning towards the plane, it hadn't begun to sink yet as I swam over.

"What are you doing!" the biggest swimmer calls, as I lift my head up for air. "I need to get the other captains out!"

Pulling myself into the plane, I rushed towards the two captains who had slumped over in their chairs, foreheads slightly bloody. They must've hit their heads on the consoles when the collision happened! Water had risen to my feet now, and I sloshed forwards towards them.

Grabbing them by the collar, I started walking slowly, dragging the both of them behind me as I kicked open the captain's door. Two of the swimmers awaited me there, and I passed them a captain each, and they floated the captains up. The water was at my waist now, and the plane was sinking faster.

Pulling myself through the water, I pushed out the door, struggling to swim. Suddenly, I couldn't move at all. Turning my head towards my foot, it had gotten caught on the back of the chair. Trying to yank my foot out of it, it remained there, unbudging. Gasping for air, I went under the water, and opened my eyes, blinking away at the salt as I bent by my foot, trying to yank it free. It moved slightly, and I went up for air again to have the water be level at my shoulders.

I went under the water again, and looked at my ankle. The only way I could get it free would be if I was to twist it...

Squeezing my eyes shut, I quickly twisted my ankle as excrutiating pain shot up my leg, and I screamed underwater. The sound was muffled, filling my mouth with gross, salty water. My ankle had come free, and I pulled myself to the surface of the water, gasping for air as I spat out the salty water.

The swimmers and the rafts were far away, and everyone was saved...thank god.

Putting my face up to the surface of the water, rain continued to pelt my face, but it felt better than being thrust underwater by its saltiness. I should start swimming over to the rafts, now.

Flipping over on my stomach, I lifted one arm to swim when a sudden bright white light flooded my senses, sending excruciating pain starting with my neck, spreading to the rest of my body.

If I thought breaking my ankle was bad, this was worse. It felt like fire ants crawling up and down my body, while I was being punched by the Hulk.

Closing my eyes, I was surrounded by blackness, and I hoped to pass out so I would no longer feel the pain.

 _ **"You risked your life to save others, how honorable,"** _a smooth voice said in my head, distracting me from the pain. Why did they sound sarcastic?

 _"Someone had to do it,"_ I thought back, and I could almost hear them laughing.

 ** _"No one had to do it. You chose to."_** I couldn't tell if it was a boy or girl voice, it just sounded like a normal person.

 _"Are you God?"_

 ** _"Far from it."_**

 _"Is this a voice I created to comfort me in my last hours? I've read about that stuff,"_ I reply, as the voice chuckles, a light flooding in my black vision.

 ** _"No, you see, I'm here to help you."_**

The light morphed into a shape, forming the outline of a person until it did. It was a tall, ruggedly-dark man with his black hair looking like soft black feathers that fell to his ears. He had dark, ruby red calculating eyes, a marble like complexion and a jaw of steel. He was dressed like a normal worker, with a black suit, black tie and a white undershirt.

 _ **"Done checking me out?"**_ he smirks, and I feel myself roll my eyes.

 _"Are you Satan?"_

 ** _"Nah, he's kind of one of my bosses, though, Hades, formally speaking; but no, I'm not him. I'm Death."_**

He must be fucking with me.

 _ **"No, I'm not fucking with you...yet."**_

 _"Gag. Anyway, what do you want?"_ I ask, feeling myself crossing my arms mentally. Even if he was Death, anything distracting me from the pain that's coursing through me is good enough.

 _ **"My bosses think what you did was heroic or whatever. Well, Hades thought it was funny, Zeus miscalculated and hit you. Poseidon is kind of angry about another plane crash in the water, but he doesn't care much so it's all taken care of."**_

What in the world is he talking about?!

 _"What's the point already?"_

 ** _"Oh, yeah, that."_** He pulls out a business card, handing it over to me, " _ **Yeah, that sounds ridiculous. Here, take a look at this."**_

The business card said 'Death, Destroyer of Worlds, Collector of Souls, Head of the Shinigami Dispatch Division.'

 _"Yeah, this is obviously trying to comfort me in my final hours, but thanks anyway."_ I answer, pocketing the card.

 ** _"No, I'm serious! I'm Death!"_** He whines, before coughing. **_"Anyway, here is the offer. Zeus and Hades have been playing a dangerous game."_**

I arch a brow, _"What is it?"_

 ** _"Hades wants to become the god of everything, essentially taking Zeus' place. Since its literally been forever since this has been debated, Zeus wants to stir up some interest. Think of it as a game of chess,"_** Death casually explains, **_"only with human kind as the chess pieces, and the Main Continent the chess board."_**

I cross my arms, for gods they don't seem to care much about causing calamity.

 ** _"Hades will amplify the greed in some people's hearts, essentially turning them into monsters. Zeus is allowing humanity to choose their chess pieces, as long as he gets to choose one. Due to your heroic act, he has decided to choose you."_**

 _"That sounds really gross."_ I stick out my tongue, I remember in mythology Zeus was a known womanizer.

 ** _"Not like that, nasty. He will give you powers to defeat the monsters, and you won't have to die. Do we have a deal?"_** Death asks, and I arch a brow.

 _"Don't people say to not make a deal with Death?"_

Death rolls his ruby red eyes, _**"Hardee-har-har, very funny. But seriously, don't you want to live and go to the University of A-City and fulfill your dream of being a vet?"**_

My face falls from it's hard look to one of shock, _"How do you know that?"_

Death smirks, crossing his arms. _**"Trust me, we know everything. It'd be creepier if you were a more disgusting human being, it's not too bad...except that you dislike country music!"**_

 _"Country music is the worst, okay?!"_ I shout back, and he _hmmphs,_ massaging his temples.

 ** _"Regardless, if you accept the deal you won't have to die. Zeus made that bolt of lightning especially powerful, so you'd have the chance to come back to life. That had 777 Billion Volts in it. If you don't accept, you're definitely dead."_**

My jaw dropped, as I gasped loudly. 777 is an odd number, but oh well, it's probably a joke, anyway. Either way, I'm dead meat. _"No way that's possible! The most is, like, 1 billion!"_

 ** _"The extra volts were to create a container of power for you in case you accept the deal, and you will accumulate more within you as time goes on. So as time goes on, you will become even more powerful."_**

The words sunk in, and I realized something. _"Will I be human, still?"_

Something changed in Death's facial composure, something similar to pity. **_"No.''_**

 _"What will I be?"_ I ask, pressuring him to tell me, and he sighs. _**"You'd be a demi-god. I wasn't supposed to tell you this unless asked, but since I'm technically giving you power to live after death, this is what you'd become."**_

I looked down, seeing the bare feet with droplets of water on it. I can either die, and leave my family and friends saddened at my loss, or I can live on, but I'll have to live with the burden of humanity upon my shoulders.

I'll take the burden, then.

Looking up at Death, a determined look settles on my face. _"It's a deal, then."_

Death smiles in relief, sticking his hand forward. **_"It's a deal."_**

I grasp his hand, shaking it as a ruby red fire engulfs the both of our hands, crawling up our arms. The fire soon withdraws from Death's arms, joining my arm as it goes around my body.

It nulls the pain, before finally making it vanish completely as Death begins to fade.

 _ **"You'll be waking up soon, so just wait here until then. I am positive we'll meet again, Gina Johnson."**_

The last thing of him that disappeared was his haunting ruby red eyes, and I sat down in the darkness, looking at my hands. My body was probably in the middle of the ocean, still. Maybe the _Kaijō Hoan-chō_ had rescued me, maybe I was dead and this was me trying to convince myself I wasn't dead.

The darkness around me began to fade to a white, and I closed my eyes, rubbing them as I reopened them to new surroundings.

I was laying in the bed of a hospital, the thin white sheets pulled over my stomach. My uncle was in the visiting chair, talking to a nurse as they both looked over at me.

"It seems Sleeping Beauty's awaken," my uncle chuckles, as I smiled faintly, looking at the IV drip in my arm.

"Water," I rasp, as the nurse quickly takes the pitcher of water on the dresser, passing it over to me. Drinking it quickly, I give it back to her, looking at my uncle.

"How long was I out?" I ask, and my uncle looks at me with his silver eyes.

"2 days, today is Monday. The _Kaijō Hoan-chō_ rescued you quickly after you were struck by lightning. They pumped the water out of your chest, and were about to use a defibrillator but they took your pulse, and it was completely normal. They took you to the hospital, and all of your vitals were measured and all were normal." The nurse fills in, "Once the Doctor makes sure you're healthy, you can actually leave."

The nurse withdrew the IV drip from my arm before leaving to get the doctor as I looked over at my uncle. "Is it a miracle I'm alive?" I ask, and he nods.

"Yes, the bolt that hit you was at least 500 million volts. You should be dead."

He's not wrong there...

"Thank the gods you're not, though," he finishes, walking over to me and squeezing my hand lightly. "We thought you'd die, your family and Penny were worried."

The doctor came in before I could reply, and he made sure I was all good to leave. My uncle, Endo, was a professor for Chemistry over at UoT. He was constantly in the lab, so we only talked with him over Skype and when he visited every-other year for a week or so with his wife.

"Do you want to stay in the dorms? Aiko and I have another room at home," he references my aunt, but I shake my head. "I'll stay in the dorms, thanks, Uncle."

"No problem, I'll drive you over there, now."

Standing up, I looked at my ankle, surprised to see it unhurt, only slightly bruised. Maybe I imagined breaking it? Brushing it off, I followed Uncle Endo to the car.

He drove me to UoT's dorms, dropping me off at the front. "So, everything that I brought is currently at the bottom of the ocean?" I ask, and Uncle nods, reaching into his pocket and withdrawing a purple flip phone.

"Here, I had your family get all their contact info in on it." he tosses it over to me, and I catch it. "Since you saved a lot of people, they started a fundraiser to get you money so you can buy some replacement items. It ends next Friday, so you can borrow some of your Aunt's clothing for now."

I nod in thanks, "Thank you, Uncle. I'll see you later."

He drives off, as I run to the front desk and get my room number: 349. Going up to the third floor, I unlock the door with the key and enter the room.

It was a small dorm room, with two bunk beds. On the bottom bunk, instead of a bed there was a desk, a school laptop on each. A man was already typing on it, and he looked up at me.

"Oh! I must be in the wrong dorm, I apologize!" I blush as he chuckles, standing up and taking off his glasses, revealing his ruby red eyes.

"Miss me?" He asks, and I gasp.

"Death?"

"You can call me Dean so people don't get freaked out," he answers, putting his hands in his pockets. He was wearing the same damn suit as he was when I first met him. "I'm also your room mate!"

"Uh, no, you're not. This is a _girl's_ dorm, in case you haven't noticed." I cross my arms, and he rolls his eyes.

"Aren't you a Sassy Susie? I'm not going to be sleeping overnight here, but it's the cover so you get this room to yourself for your training. Besides, anyone who sees me coming out of your dorm will just assume I'm your boyfriend." He informs matter-of-factly, and I arch a brow. Gross.

"That sounds gross, and what about training?"

"To fight Hades' side, of course. You see, right now the heavens are split. An extreme amount of minor gods are taking themselves under Hades' wing, while the more major gods are taking Zeus' side, while some remain neutral. Power is on the side of the person who wins this battle," Death informs, and I sigh.

"This sounds like the whole fate of the heavens is on my shoulders."

"It's not just your shoulders, but you'll be leading it," he waves off, causing me to shudder.

"What was that training thing you mentioned?" I ask, taking off my shoes and setting them by the side of the door.

"Oh, that! Well, a priestess saw a few years into the future and saw the strongest man's training. It was quite similar to Heracles', too, but Heracles started off with a lot more. This guy is very indifferent, though, so Zeus chose not to recruit him, since he'd probably not care." Death informs, and my face droops.

"Great, I was second choice."

"His training regimen 100 Push-Ups, 100 Sit-Ups, 100 Squats and a 10KM, but he's a normal human," Death, err, Dean quipped, a smirk growing on his pink lips, "so, since you're a demi-god now, you'll be doing double of that. Every. Single. Day."

"What?!" I screech, and Dean cackles. "Not only that, but you won't have any air conditioner or heater! Strengthens the mind!"

That's even worse!

"And, you won't be able to drink regular water from bottles! You'll have to drink tap water, too!" He cackles, a dark look in his eyes as I fall to the ground.

Death is too cruel.

"And no chocolate milk!"

I fall to the ground, utterly defeated. Choccy milk is the best milk, and I look up. "When can I have the chocolate milk?"

"After you defeat 5 monsters." He smiles, "But this is just preparation for the battles to come. There's other minor heroes who are taking care of the monsters, but Hades will be causing a large influx soon enough."

"Ugh! Why are they taking so long up there?" I ask, and he sighs, sitting down. "You don't understand how old these gods are, another year or two is similar to a day for them. Another stepping stone."

I stand up, sitting in the chair and I relax slightly. The chair is really nice and comfortable. "Why are you training me? Don't you have people to kill or something?"

"I don't, the Shinigami Dispatch takes care of that for me. I only do them when I have a shortage of workers, which is almost every day, but I'm on a paid vacation, technically." he examines his nails, stretching out his fingers, "Besides, it's either me or Heracles, and Heracles would've made you start off with 5x the amount."

50 km...that's 30 miles!

"I'm suddenly grateful," I groan out, and Death smiles a cheery smile. "Great! We start today! There's a pair of running shoes, t-shirt and running shorts for you on your bunk bed."

"What about a sports bra?" I ask, as Death looks me up and down. "Do you really need one?"

My cheeks flush, as I shove him out the door. "Get out!"

He cackles as I slam the door behind him, looking at the top of the bunk bed. There was a sports bra there, he must've been messing with me.

Putting on the sports bra, shorts and running shoes, I look in the standing-mirror, examining my body. I was still slightly pale from just coming from the hospital, and I should probably eat something before I start working out. Turning around and looking in the mirror, I gasp at what I saw.

A large lichtenburg figure had formed a perfect circle on the back of my neck. It branched outward, some of it crawling up my neck, some sprawling over my shoulder, and some of it went down past mid-back. The scariest part was the perfect circle in the base of my neck, though, which was slightly whiter than the rest of my skin.

That's where I was struck, I guess. Walking outside of my dorm, I look at Death, who crosses his arms.

"Where is your shirt?" He asks, and I point inside the room. "I don't need a shirt, it'll just get drenched in sweat, anyway."

"Fine, let's get you something to eat before you work out."

* * *

I've never had a BLT this good before, mostly because I've never eaten one after coming out of a 2 day coma. Wiping my mouth with my hands, Death went on his iPhone 4, texting someone from it.

We waited 20 minutes before doing the exercises, and after all the 200 reps it was time for the worst possible thing ever: the 20km run. I've always hated running, so this wasn't going to be fun.

"Alright, here's what you're going to do," he informs as I practically chug a bottle of tap water, "you're going to run to this Starbucks 10 KM away, and go to the drive through. When you run by, go to the window and run in place, and tell them you're picking up for Dean. They'll give it to you, and you'll run back. BUT! If you spill anything, you'll have to do it again."

"Fine." I nod, before standing at the starting line, already panting.

"Take your mark...go!"

* * *

"Well hello there, sweetie, what are you doing in the drive through?" The Starbucks employee asks, as I lean on the counter, breathing heavily.

"D-dean," I rasp, and she arches a brow. "What?"

"D-dean's order," I wheeze, "can I have it."

"Oh, silly me!" She reaches behind her, pulling out a scolding hot coffee with 3 scones in a bag. "I placed a little green thingie in it, too."

Nodding in thanks, I begin to run back, narrowly avoiding spilling the coffee or dropping the scones. Finally, I make it back to Dean, who's tapping his foot and checking his watch.

"2 hours, 40 minutes, and 29 second to do a 20km, you make me laugh," he snorts, taking a sip from the coffee, flicking the green stopper at me. "Since this is your first day, I'll allow the coffee stopper since it kept it hot, but next time you do this I'll make you do it again."

I ignore him, trudging past him to get to the water sitting on the table.

"That's a big no-no, it's _bottled_ water, not tap," Dean tuts, smirking widely, "you'll have to go upstairs to get water from the tap."

"You really suck, you do realize that," I mumble, taking a singular step forward before collapsing in a heap on the ground, bile rising up my throat.

* * *

 **OCTOBER, 6 MONTHS LATER**

"Here is your pumpkin spice latte, with a shot of cream, and here is your sugar cookie." I pass each item in turn to Dean, who takes a large gulp of the latte.

"Ah, human food never gets old." He shoots me a toothy grin, "I can tell your training's come a long way, all thanks to me, of course."

Glaring at him, I couldn't help but realize how true it was. My chubby cheeks were gone, replaced by high cheekbones, and all of my fat melted off and was replaced by pure muscle. The doctor the other day said I had a super low heart rate at 30 BPM, but when I told him how intensely I worked out he said it was understandable. It also might be due to the fact I'm now a demigod...

But it's still been hard, I vomited at least once a week due to the intense regimen, and had to take power naps constantly through the day to make sure I didn't fall asleep in class.

"I went to a public forum the other day on Mount Olympus about the events to come," Dean says between bites, and I look up. "Really?"

"The battle will begin soon, with an increase monsters appearing between 1-2 years from now. Some will be major, mostly minor in the beginning, but regardless they are coming, so we will need to move your training from the beginner's stage."

"What?" I ask, getting frustrated. Just as I had nearly mastered running a 20k daily!

"You will now run a 25k daily, alongside doing 250 of each exercise. Then, you will enter fighting training...with a buffoon," Dean growls spitefully at the end, and I arch a brow. "What?"

"The gods originally wanted to send him down here to help fight, but since he's in 'retirement' now for all the 'deeds' he committed, he'll train you to fight instead..." Dean complains, "he made an awfully large mess. He was so damn strong he knocked the souls out of enemies."

Gulp. That sounds scary.

"It was so much damn paperwork at the time, I'm getting a headache just thinking about it," Dean pinched his temples, breathing in.

"Who is it?" I ask, as Dean rolls his eyes.

"Heracles, the giant oaf. He's all brawn and no brain, for your information. He easily fell for almost every woman who dare bat an eyelash in his direction, fell prey to Hera's tricks, and-"

"Thanatos! It's been a long time!" A booming voice called out from behind Dean, causing him to sweat drop.

"Great," Dean murmurs, turning around to come face-to-chest with the biggest man I've ever seen. Other people around us were watching him, before hurridly looking away.

"Heyyyy Heracles, how's life," Dean dragged out hey, seemingly _very_ excited to see the large oaf known as Heracles.

Heracles was the largest man I've ever seen, well over 7 feet tall. He had long brown hair pulled back from his face in a half-up-down ponytail, with the bottom half of his face covered in a brown beard. He had stern, blue eyes set deep into his skull, hidden under a pair of brown bushy brows. He had thin lips, complimented by a strong Roman nose. He had large muscles bulging out from under his black Nike shirt with a pair of jeans that looked like they would rip at any second if he twitched a large muscle.

It wasn't like he was unattractive, he just looked like a damn lumberjack!

"Oh, is this the new demigod?" He booms, looking down at me. Since I'm at least two feet shorter than him, I had to look up high to look him in the eye, squinting at the sun behind him.

"Uh, yeah, I'm Gina Johnson," I place my hand forward, err, more upward to him to shake. He took my small hands in his large meaty ones, shaking my hand which rattled me to the core. A faint shock coursed through our hands the moment we touched, and he yanked his hand back.

"I see! This is because of the lightning, yes?" He asks, and I nod.

Dean had explained to me that I harbored over 777 billion volts of lightning within me, and I was constantly absorbing more from around me. Whenever I touched anything except rubber I'd be shocked, which is somewhat annoying but I've gotten used to it over time.

"Very 'neat-o,' as humans say!" He laughs, giving Dean a large pat on the back, causing him to stumble forward. "I will teach Lady Gina now the art of sword fighting!"

"And do I have to ask someone else to teach her how to use the lightning?" Dean asks, composing himself once more.

"Zeus would be a good person!" Heracles offers, and Dean's eyes widen. "He'd be willing to do it?"

Heracles paused, giving Dean an 'are you stupid?' look. "No, I just meant he'd be a good person to do it."

Dean facepalmed as I stifled a laugh, following Heracles to a sparring area.

* * *

 **December 31st**

"Another victory!" Heracles cheers, banging his wooden _bokken_ against the ground, making me cringe.

Yes, another victory for the undefeatable Heracles, of course. The 199th, to be exact. I was tired of being beat up like this, it was annoying and I'm bruised like a damn avocado all over! Standing up, defeated, I walk past Heracles, heading for the door of the training gym.

"Are you surrendering already? You usually fight 5 battles!" Heracles calls out behind me, and with a few powerful strides he is right next to me.

"Tonight is New Year's Eve, and I'll be heading down to Kanda Myōjin with a few friends from class," I inform, waving as I walk off before Heracles can insert another word.

Heading to the girl's locker room, I quickly shower before dressing in a black sweater and a plaid skirt. My phone dings, as I pull out my phone.

 _'Can't make it tonight, family issues. Sorry! -Atami'_

My eyebrows crease, but I text back a _'No worries! Hope it all goes smoothly. -Gina'_

I hate flakes with a burning passion, so for her to bail out an hour before midnight is not cool. The two others had already bailed, so I don't see any reason to go to Kanda anyway. It's such a popular temple anyway, so I'll head out to Yushima Tenman and see if Dean wants to come with. I can pray for good grades or something.

Pulling up Dean's number, it rings a couple times before he picks up. "Hello?"

"Hey, Dean, want to meet me at Yushima Tenman before midnight?"

Dean sighs, and I can practically imagine him rolling his eyes on the opposite side. "Do I have to?"

"It's New Year's Eve, what else would you be doing?" I ask, and he paused, obviously looking for an excuse.

"Fine, I'll meet you there." He gives in, "I'll see you there in 15 minutes, no later than 11:45."

"You got it, see ya!" Hanging up the phone, I jog outside the school's gymnasium, heading over to my bike. Climbing onto it, I start peddling towards the shrine, arriving there quickly. Locking up my bike, I step aside, going by the steps and seeing Dean there.

"Hey Dean!" I wave over to him, and he crosses his arms, tapping his expensive shoes impatiently.

"Not a moment early, not a moment late." He clucks, looking at his Rolex. "Do you want to get a omamori?"

"Sure," I reply, and we walk to the stand, looking over the charms.

"What about I get you one, and you get one for me?" I ask, and he nods, rolling his eyes. "Whatever floats your boat, Gina."

Sifting through the charms, I thought a success one might be next, until the one that seemed just right for Dean was before me.

Pokkuri:an amulet to ward off death. Chuckling to myself, I place the appropriate yen on the table, before backing off and heading over to Dean who had already found an omamori.

"So, what did you get me?" He asks, and I arch a brow. "Close your eyes, first."

He rolls his eyes, closing them promptly. Taking the pokkuri omamori, I attach it around his cuff link, looping it twice so it won't fall off immediately. He opens his eyes, holding up the omamori, and he arches a brow, an amused expression on his face. "An omamori...to ward off Death? Shouldn't you be keeping this?"

"Ha ha," I roll my eyes, "I just thought it'd be ironic. I should've gotten you a custom one to ward off Heracles."

"Oh, that would be an extremely useful one," he responds as we burst into laughter. "Alright, now it's time for mine. Close your eyes."

"Alright," I say, closing my eyes. In the darkness I can feel a small silk square be placed on my hand, the string dangling off of it.

"Open your eyes."

Opening them, I look at the pastel red omamori, and I smile softly. "Strength?"

"Yeah, I know you've been having troubles with you and Heracles' training, so I hope this helps. If you don't like it I'll give it away-" he awkwardly says, rubbing the back of his neck. Laughing, I smile up at him. "Don't, I think it's cool. I think this'll definitely help, thanks."

For the next hour we talked, got food, and had a generally nice time.

"I've got to use the bathroom, I'll be right back," I state, feeling the urge to pee suddenly.

"Have fun," Dean replies as I scutter off to the bathroom, closing the stall door behind me. Relieving myself, I flushed the toilet and was about to leave when I heard the bathroom door open and a gaggle of girls entered. They gossiped as they stood in front of the mirror, doing their makeup.

''Ugh, who's that guy who's always with Gina?" One finally says, "I can't remember his name, but I always see them hanging outside school together. Anyway, I saw him outside, and he's kind of cute."

Putting my hand over my mouth to prevent myself from laughing, one of them puckers her lips in the mirror. I can't see their upper faces right now through the bathroom stall crack, they just need to turn their faces a bit more...

"Ew, Gina is _so_ weird, though! She, like, barely talks to anyone after class, always going directly to the dorms," one of them says as my heart falls in my chest. Why was I being gossiped about? I've always been nice to everyone, and besides, the reason I always go directly to the dorms is because I go to training with Hercules straight after school.

"She's such a weird halfie with that American accent, like, go back to your stupid island!" Another tittered, as I feel tears begin to prick my eyes.

Since the Main Continent and Hawaii aren't that far away, it wasn't uncommon for there to be a lot of Main Continent-American kids at school, so we always joked around about being half American and Main-Continent. But, they made it seem like I was uneducated and came from a cave.

"Like, what's with the red hair? It looks so weird! I've never seen anyone with natural hair like that, she looks like a fire hydrant!" Another says, causing the other two to laugh. "Makes sense since sometimes she shows up to class looking like she showered in piss!"

In the beginning of my training I'd show up just in time for class, but I'd be a sweaty, heaving mess. Now I take a five minute shower after, but I don't always have enough time to blow dry my hair.

That's it, I've had enough! Wiping away my tears hastily, I open the stall door, and I join in on the laughing, causing everyone's heads to turn towards me. Now, I'm absolutely sure my heart has fallen out.

It was the girls I was going to go to the temple with. I never had many friends at my old school, I was a bit on the quieter side until people got to know me, and I thought I had finally made friends here after forming a group with them for our Psychology project.

But now? It all seemed to have been a lie, they probably only kept me around for a laughing source. I can't believe they lied to me, it hurt deeply inside.

I wanted to use my training, to pull out my fists and pummel them to the ground, but I wasn't going to do that, no.

I was going to do something _worse._ When they had been talking all this time about their grades and their family issues, I was listening whole-heartedly.

Now I was going to throw these back at them.

"You may call me these things, but at least I can get into college without having to give out hundreds of BJs," I look at Atami as her face falls. "Isn't the whole staff pleasured by you, now? It must be fun, having the whole staff giving you A's and B's when you're passing out the B's-"

"I'm going to kick your ass!" Atami screeches, starting towards me as one of her cronies, Jun, held her back. "Don't do it!" Jun says, and I recognized her as the one who called me fire hydrant. That must mean Atami called me weird and Dean cute, while Momo said I came from a stupid island. I must say that Momo's words hurt me most, so I'll save my roast for last.

"Jun means obedient, which is true. You follow Atami like a stray dog, and always stay on top of things, including your boyfriend, Jiro... or should I say girlfriend?" I smirk knowingly as Jun's face flushes, "W-what?"

I have nothing against gay people, but Jun had a bg secret.

"A couple of months ago you were 'sick' from school, so I went to your dorm to bring you your homework. When I opened the door, I saw you on top of another girl from our class...Rika, isn't it?"

"Ew, that weird blonde girl?!" Atami screeches, as Jun shakes her head. "You all know I really love Jiro-!"

"And Jiro just happens to be the rich-bitch cousin of Momo. If I'm correct, Momo, didn't Jiro happen to ask to help get Jun into school?" I ask, remembering her complain about her annoying cousin.

"Yeah," she mumbles, and I smirk. "Well, it seems Jun is only with him because he's her _sugar daddy._ "

"Shut up, Gina!" Jun snaps easily, anger in her beady, black eyes. "You don't know what you're talking about!"

"Oh, I really do. After all, I'm from a stupid island, and we're very good at _dropping the bomb._ " The girls gasp as I chuckle, looking at Momo. War of Poman took place 200 years ago, and my island dropped a bomb on the coast of what is F-City.

"Momo, meaning peach. You are quite peachy, always smiling at others, but that's a cover up, isn't it? I know you got in on C's, and you're parents paid for you to get in. Hell, the only reason that you aren't flunking out right now is because of Atami helping you out a bit right now," I chuckle darkly as she flashes Atami a look, as Atami sheepishly looks away. "You thought you were smarter than all of us, but in reality, you're just a pampered princess-"

"I've had enough of you!" Momo screamed, her once blue pupils turning stormy, soon turning both of her eyes black, her skin starting to turn a light orange...

What the hell is happening?

"Momo! Are you okay?" Jun asks, and a shiver runs up my spine. This isn't good...

"Jun! Atami! Get behind me!" I shout, and they give me weird looks. "You were roasting us, and now you expect us to trust you? Hell no!" Atami shouts, as a ripple of energy runs across Momo.

Her long, black hair floats upward, before changing forms to look like a giant peach on her head. Her slanted black eyes' short eyelashes grow extremely long, and her clothing sheds as she grows taller. A pair of 'hammertime pants' that look like a giant peach grow on her legs, while her chest turns a dark orange, looking like the top of a dress. Reaching behind her, she pulls out an umbrella from nowhere, lazing it on the back of her shoulder.

"I am Princess Peach, and all will bow to me!" She announces, her voice deepening. Oh my god, is this going to be how Hades turns people into monsters? I didn't think it would be this soon...

"What the hell happened to you, Momo!?" Jun cries, tears streaking down her face.

"I am not Momo, I am Princess Peach! The gods recognized that I am a natural Princess, and have given me the power to take over the world!" She cries out, as Atami and Jun give each other a final look, before screeching and running out of the bathroom.

"No! My followers, come back!" Princess Peach shouts, sprinting out the door as I follow, fists raised.

"You ain't going anywhere!" I shout, looking at the 15-foot tall giantess, swollen hands gripped around her umbrella. There was mass panic around us, everyone screaming as they ran for the exit. Dean was leaning against the pole, sipping a soda.

"Take her out!" Dean shouts, and I look over at him as he gives me a thumbs up. Nodding in his direction, I look at the swollen person in front of me.

"Hey, I just realized something," I wonder aloud, as the Princess glares down at me. "What?"

"Peaches kinda resemble butts, so you're Princess Butthead," I comment, as her eyes widen.

"Princess...Butthead...?" She repeats, before a burning anger sets in her eyes. "No one calls me that!"

She swung her umbrella at me violently, as I quickly dodged each strike. I guess this training wasn't for nothing...

She opened her mouth, spitting giant brown pits at me. "Oh my god, you're even spitting poop! You are Princess Butthead!" I laugh, now dodging the look-alike-poop and the umbrella.

"They're peach pits, you illiterate swine!" She stops spewing peach pits, but now she spews words of anger at me. I see, she can't talk and spit at the same time. Rolling out of the way, I noticed she had cut a hole in my sweater.

That's so rude!

"I'm the illiterate one?" I calmly ask, preparing my stance as I feel an energy in my fists. Running towards her, she strikes her umbrella downwards as I jump upon it, running up her arm.

"Oh my god!" She shrieks, swinging at her arm as I dodge, resulting in her cutting off her arm. Peaches are soft, so she'll be easy to exterminate. Now at her shoulder, I raise a foot, feeling power gaining in it.

"Thunder kick!" I announce, before bring my foot down on her head, knocking the whole peach off the body. Peach juices squirted all over me, drenching me as the body crumpled to the ground.

"Ew, I feel sticky," I complain, as Dean slowly claps, making his way over to me.

"Congrats on taking out your first enemy, Gina," he greets, looking at the body. "I would give you a high five, but you're sticky..."

"I know," I reply, looking inside the body to see a bunch of individual peaches. "Is she...dead?"

"Yes, and there's no way to reverse someone becoming a monster, if that's what you're going to ask. They put their soul in Tartarus the moment they agreed to become a monster," Dean informs, getting on his knees as he pulls out some peaches from her body.

"Ew! What are you doing?!" I ask, and he arches a brow. "Getting peaches, these are expensive, you know. Besides, it's not like it's made from human flesh, their real bodies are completely gone."

Sighing, I get on my knees, helping him retrieve the peaches. The owner of the shrine thanks us for defeating the monster, and gives us a few boxes to take the peaches home in.

"What will you do with the body? It's just a giant peach, basically," I ask the owner, and they give me a toothy grin.

"We'll be selling peach on the menu for the next few weeks! Whenever you come by, I'll give you free food!"

Gross.

* * *

 **February 2nd**

Holding my _bokken_ to Heracles' neck, he smirked down at me. "I see, you've finally advanced enough to use real weapons."

"I win the 260th fight, then," I reply, tapping his thick neck lightly, before pulling away the _bokken._

"You are truly the most powerful human, currently. There will be others who will try to surpass you, so we need to train your real 'power,' now."

"Real...power?" I ask, and Heracles nods, a goofy smile on his face. "Did you seriously think you'd just be fighting with a _bokken_ against real enemies?"

"Uh, kinda?" I ask, as Heracles laughs, throwing his head back.

"No way, these are like twigs!" To prove himself, he held his _bokken_ , snapping it easily.

"You're paying for damages," I grumble, setting my _bokken_ down. "What am I going to do, now, Heracles?"

"Hold out your fingers, and put your index fingers a centimeter from each other," he lectures, and I do what I'm told. "Now what?"

"Imagine there's a currency going between them," he finishes, as I focus on my fingers. There's nothing for a moment, before there's a visible electric shock going between the two.

"Woah!" I gasp, and Heracles nods. "Now, pull your fingers further apart from each other, and continue."

* * *

 **April**

It's been one year since I've first come to the Main Continent, and now it's my second year in college. I passed all my classes with B's and A's, so I will be able to continue on my scholarship.

My lightning skills have also improved rapidly, now I can shoot a ball of lightning a few feet away from me, and cover my body in a lightning aura. No monsters had appeared in a while, so I'm figuring there will be a sudden burst of monsters, soon.

"This is your weapon, Athena crafted it herself with Zeus' help. It will be able to withstand your lightning, so don't worry about it," Hercules says, passing me the hilt of a sword.

It was silver with bandaging wrapped around it for grip, Greek letters scripted in it that I can't read. Peering down the hilt, I saw nothing.

"Where's the weapon part?" I ask, "Isn't there supposed to be a sword?"

"A xiphos, to be exact, and yes. See, you have to use your power to activate it, so no one else can use it. Hephaestus made it alongside Zeus, before he switched sides, but that's not important." he informs, as I nod, looking at the silver hilt. I suppose that makes sense, since silver is the best conductor.

Putting lightning in my hand, the silver glowed as a xiphos quickly grew from the hilt, sparking bits silver and blue electricity off of it.

"Woah," I mumble, flipping the sword in my hand.

"Correct! Not only can you annihilate your enemies by fighting them with your legs and fists, but now you can put your lightning in weapon form! Now, we will start the _real_ training!"

* * *

 **A/N**

So, on the OPM map it shows a large continent (where the story takes place) with a smaller island. The smaller island in this story is American territory, and less than 5% of the World's Population is from there. So, there's some discrimination that takes place in this story due to it being different and being viewed as a '3rd world' stage country, since it's different than the MC (Main Continent).

The MC is the equivalent of Japan, and America...well, is America. But this America is only a group of Islands, divided into sectors. There's 52 islands, and each is named a different place (Hawai'i, Texas, California, etc) and is divided into towns. Depending on how big the Island is, it may have more towns than others.

There is more islands on the other side of the world, where different ethnicity come from, explaining Penny's origin. Hawai'i is basically where a bunch of mixed-race people live in this story.

There's a few different languages in this story. There's the main language, which everyone on the MC is required to learn (Japanese), but not in the Americas. Since Gina's mom is from the MC, she grew up in a multi-cultured household and therefore learned both languages. The other language that Gina knows is English.


	2. Chapter 2

**APRIL**

It's been one full year since I was struck by lightning, and a lot has changed. For example, I can control lightning, can fight really well now, and I have reading glasses.

The latter happening right now, of course.

"How about this style?" The optician asks, handing me a pair of super-cute glasses. Putting the frames on my eyes, I looked into the mirror and saw these ones were perfect.

"I love them! How much are they?" I ask, as the optician gives me a toothy grin.

"44,274 yen."

My jaw dropped, looking at the expensive glasses in my hand. I barely had enough each week to feed myself, now I had to pay about half of my weekly-pay for this?!

"Is there anything cheaper?" I ask, as the optician arches a brow, before holding up a pair of thick-framed, rectangular glasses that looked like they belonged on Carl from Up.

"These are our cheapest at 1,500 yen. No one buys this design, so we'll install your prescribed lenses in, free of charge. Of course, this is the only pair we'll do it for," the optician glares at the ugly glasses, and I sigh.

"I'll take them."

* * *

"You look ridiculous!" Dean cackles, wiping a tear from his ruby red eyes.

"Shut it! It was the cheapest pair, and I was getting headaches in class," I explain, pushing the heavy glasses up my nose.

"With those glasses, you can pass off for an elderly woman!"

"Agh!" I groan, flopping onto my mattress in the dorm room. "It was the only way I could still have money for groceries. Why is A-City so damn expensive?!"

"It's a popular city, practically crawling with rich people. Of course merchants are going to tax the living hell out of people," Dean grumbles, and I laugh slightly at his joke.

"I suppose so."

We were silent for a moment, until Dean walks over to the desk under my bunk bed, picking up the silver hilt in his hand.

"Can't you summon it to your hand if you try hard enough?" He asks, and I nod.

"I can only do it from a maximum of 3 meters right now," I answer, holding out my right hand as a small spark of electricity cracked from the palm of my hand. The hilt slipped from Dean's grip, soaring into my outstretched hand.

"You need to practice that, then. It might not always be close to you," he warns, and I roll my eyes. "I know that already. Besides, I always keep it in my tote bag."

"Good," he replies, looking at my desk, cluttered with overpriced Uni books and papers. "Are you ready for your second year?"

"Sadly, and now I'm doubting if I even want to be a veterinarian. Do I even know if I'd do good at it?" I sigh, thwacking the back of my head against the pillow. "I mean, if I have to take care of defeating monsters on the Main Continent, will I even have time to do it? I don't think counteracting the forces of hell is a paying job."

"Well, it could be if Hades wasn't also the god of wealth. I'm sure if you talked to him you could work it out," Dean ponders, and I arch a brow.

"If I was attacking Hades' armies, why in the world would he pay me for it?!"

"It's not so much a war as it is a game, you're forgetting that the gods are at least twice as old as this universe," Dean points out as my eyes widen. They're so damn old!

"So, this is basically to quench their boredom? By playing with humanity?" I ask, slightly angered as Dean nods. "Yeah, that's pretty much it. You guys practically run yourselves down here anyway, it's not like Hades and Zeus changing positions would change much. People would probably still believe Zeus was the leader all along, unless Hades chose to reveal himself, though he'd probably not. He's a pretty chill guy."

"Chill?! He's literally amplifying the hatred and evil in people's hearts to turn them into monsters!" I sit upright, looking at Dean with wild eyes.

"Oh, not just humans. All the other species out there are gonna join in on the attacks, because if their race defeats all of humanity's protectors they get a portion to control and all the wealth they wish. Don't forget, Hades is the god of wealth, too." Dean shrugs and my jaw drops. If people learn that, there'll be a coup d'etat!

"How did they find this out?" I ask, as Dean looks at me as if it was the most obvious answer. "Well, Hades told them. Duh, stupid human."

"He _told them?!_ People have been praying to gods for the longest time, and they hardly answer!" I exclaim, as Dean shrugs.

"They've tried to reply for centuries, but humans are ignorant. The smallest signs back in ancient times used to be worshiped, but now they're easily overlooked."

Closing my eyes, I inhale, surrendering. It would do me no use to argue about this. "Fine, fine, fine." I open my eyes again, "So not only will I have to fight monster-humans, but just plain-old monsters?"

"Yes, and aliens."

"Aliens?!"

"Well, of course. You didn't think humans were the only beings out in this miserable universe?" Dean rolls his eye, taking a sip from his Big-Gulp soda. "I forgot how vain and ignorant your people are."

"I knew we weren't the only ones..." I glance aside, slightly embarrassed, "but it's not like we know much about them. Our technology is probably not that advanced enough, yet."

"Oh, your technology is fine the way it is, you're just not using it properly. Don't worry, the aliens will show themselves in a year or two, anyway."

"WHAT?!"

* * *

 **A COUPLE DAYS LATER**

"Today's the first day of your second year, and I'm getting kicked out?!" Dean screeches, and I shrug, placing my books in my tote bag.

"Well, technically the room mate I had was afraid there was a ghost in here so she spent the year in her boyfriend's dorm," I inform, rolling my eyes, "and someone requested me as their room mate, but I don't know who it is. But I get to keep the same room, which is all good for me."

"You have to dorm with a freshman, ha! Sucks for you," Dean sticks his tongue out, causing me to arch a brow. "And you'll be homeless."

"Well, about that, I've always had an apartment in A-City..." Dean trails off, and my jaw drops. "Are you kidding me?! Why haven't you told me this?!"

Dean never slept over in the dorm, it seemed he was out clubbing or partying or doing some godly work each night. He said 'sleep is a luxury, not a necessity' so he never slept.

"What do you use the apartment for?!"

"Nothing, I just store a bunch of paperwork in there. Most gods have residences on random places on Earth, it's not uncommon, but they usually don't spend much time down here."

"Why didn't you tell me this before? If I was staying in your apartment it's a lot cheaper than a dorm!" I look at Dean as he shrugs. "Wasn't important."

"Well, can I use your apartment, then? I don't suppose you pay taxes on it, do you," I ask, eager to snatch his apartment. Dean arches a brow, "What's in it for me? Will you pay me for it?"

"I can't afford any apartment in A-City with what I currently have," I inform, "what can I do to pay you back if I can use it?"

Dean paused for a moment, before a large grin came onto his face. "You have to call me Master Dean from now on."

Ugh, that sounds gross. "Okay-"

"And you have to let me use your sword whenever, too."

"No can do, Dean. Nothing against you, but the sword is built off electricity. When Heracles held it in his hands it gave him 3rd degree burns."

Dean winced, shaking his head. "Never mind that, then. Alright, if I give you the apartment you'll have to clean it yourself, okay?"

"Deal!"

* * *

" _This_ is your apartment?" I shriek, looking around the apartment. Paper stacks towered to the ceiling, while random stains cluttered the wall. Dirt was tracked everywhere in the 2 room, 1 bathroom and kitchen area, and I had seen literal _bugs_ crawl around in it.

"Yep, just old paperwork that I don't use anymore." He boasts, as I look at the shortest paper pile, covered in spider webs on the top. Lifting the pile slightly from the bottom, I quickly withdraw a piece of paper, scattering dust all over.

Coughing at the dust and waving my hand at it to disperse the cloud, I look at the paper.

"Death certificates?" I ask, "Why are these unimportant?"

"Everyone in here had a soul once, but they were either consumed by a demon, or were lost forever and could not move onto the next life. Their souls are non-existent, now." Dean gestured around the room, and suddenly all the paperwork seemed overwhelming. "You see, when humans die they believe that they are lost forever. But really, only the people who have lost their souls are gone forever."

"So, death is just another phase in the grand scheme of things."

"Exactly."

Glancing around the room once more, I took a step out, pulling out my phone. "I'll stay in the dorms for another semester, but in the meantime I'll be taking care of cleaning the room. What should I do with the paperwork?"

"You can burn it, it's useless now." Dean's unfazed words sent slight shivers down my spine. In those rooms were the lives of people who once existed, with lots of memories, but now it is all gone. There's no soul left, and their memories were burnt to a crisp.

Closing the door behind me, I put the address in on my phone, before snapping it closed. "Alright, time to head to class."

* * *

"See you later, Heracles." I wave goodbye at the sweaty mass, hopping onto my bike as I head over to the dorms. I'm hardly there, so when I am in the dorms it is in the wee hours of the morning or late at night.

Unlocking the door, I'm bombarded by a sudden tackle.

 _"Oompf!"_ I stumble back, before wrapping my arms around the person and bending backwards, flipping them over my head and onto the ground. Spinning around and placing my foot on the chest of the attacker, I raise a fist.

"Owowowowow! Come on, Gina!" Penny groans, and my eyes widen. "Shit, Penny! You startled me, I'm so sorry!" I apologize, helping her stand up.

"Don't worry," she wheezes, placing her hands on her hips. "I'm all good."

Realization sunk into me. This was the Main Continent, and Penny doesn't live here.

"Oh my stars, why are you here? Though I love seeing you and all, I'm just wondering," I ask as we step into the dorm room, closing the door behind us.

"Well, after you left I really buckled down. I started studying really hard, and due to the success of having lots of foreign students come in, this University offered a full-scholarship for anyone who wanted to try for it, but they had to know the language. So, I learned how to write, and they offered me the scholarship this year."

"So you graduated early?" I ask, and she nods. "The kids in my grade are scrambling to learn the language as fast as possible, I wouldn't have stood a chance if I tried for it next year."

"But you're supposed to be a junior next year! Aren't you a little young for college?" I ask, and she shakes her head defiantly. "I'm 17 now, some kids graduate at this age. I'm not missing much in our musty, small town anyway. Besides, now you can show me A-City! I bet you go clubbing, and have lots of friends!"

The smile on my face falters for a split second, before going back up. "That's not really my kind of crowd, Penny, and you know that. Besides, I don't have time to do that with school."

"Come on, Gina! You tell me you work out a lot, can't you take some time away from that tomorrow to come clubbing with me?" She begs, giving me a pair of puppy-dog eyes. I furrow my brows, "I can't, Penny-"

The puppy-dog eyes bore into my soul, begging me to come with her. Sighing, I glance away from them. "Fine, Penny, we can go somewhere tomorrow. Let me tell D-my fitness trainer that I can't come in tomorrow."

Dean and Heracles are going to be _pissed._ I'll still do my 30k, but I'll have to get up even earlier to do it now. Thanks, Penny.

"Yay!" She claps, "Well, we should be sleeping now so we'll be energized tomorrow. Oh, and Gina?"

"Yeah?"

"You smell absolutely _awful,_ go take a shower for goodness sake."

I knew I smelt like sweat, but she didn't have to be an ass about it. Grumbling to myself, I head off to the showers, before heading to bed.

* * *

 **The next day, sometime around 10 PM**

"You are not drinking anything, by the way," I tell Penny as we slip past the bouncer. Penny had given me one of her 'sexy' dresses that looked odd on me. Her short gold dress hugged all of her curves perfectly, while the silver dress on my clung awkwardly to my skin, showing off my great flat chest and my flat ass. I felt like a piece of paper in it. Penny had begged me to come to this club, but I really didn't want to because I had a bad feeling about it.

"Hey! Gina, what are you doing here?" A voice asked, as I turned to see Dean, a playful smirk on his lips.

Ugh, of course he's here. No wonder I had a bad feeling about this place...

"Oh, hi _Dean,_ just spending time with my cousin, Penny. What are you doing here?" I seethe through a smile, as Penny looks up at the smiling-through-the-anger Dean.

"Having a drink." He shouted back over the music, and I glared at him even more. He knew that Penny and I were going clubbing after I told him and Heracles I was cancelling for the day to spend time with my cousin. Of course he has to remind us of that...

"I'm Penny," Penny shouts to him, slightly bashful. "Dean, pleasure to meet you."

The two shook their hands, and I resist the urge to roll my eyes. If Penny knew he was Death she would've ran out of here, screaming like a maniac.

"Penny is my _seventeen_ year old cousin, so don't let her fool you into buying her a drink," I spit out, as Penny nervously laughs. "I wasn't planning on doing that anyway... besides! You're still 19!"

"My birthday is in June, I'm practically an adult anyway," I remind, looking at Dean. "Dean, how old are you?"

"A lot older than I look," he chuckles as Penny's mouth forms an 'o' shape. "So, you're about 24?"

"You gotta add about a centillion of 0s-"

"Yeah, he's about 24," I cover up, elbowing Dean in the gut, which went unnoticed by Penny.

"Okay!" She smiles, "I took Gina here to dance, so let's go! You can come with us if you want, Dean!"

Please don't please don't please don't please don't-

"I don't dance, thanks for the offer, though-" Dean smiles, leering down at me with a vicious smirk, "besides, I'd rather watch you guys dance."

I gulp, slightly fearing for my life. I can't dance whatsoever.

"Awesome! Alright, Gina, let's go!" Penny grabbed me by the hand, practically dragging me to the dance floor. I looked back at Dean, mouthing 'help me' to him as he simply chuckled, waggling his fingers in a goodbye. It was like he was saying 'this is what you get for cancelling on me.'

Penny and I danced for a bit, where she basically did all the dancing and guys grinded up against her; while I stood there awkwardly and pushing away people who tried dancing with me.

Dean soon came onto the dance floor, pulling me aside for a moment. "You have a funny feeling about this place, too?" He asks, and I suddenly realize the bad feeling I had wasn't just me. Dean sensed something, too.

I nod, as Dean eyes the dance floor. "I think shit's going to hit the fan, soon."

"How can we get people out of here, then?" I ask, as Dean pauses. "I think I have an answer, but I'll have to come back in an hour. Do you think you can handle it until then?"

He'd be back by 12:00, then, and the club closes at 3:00 AM. Nodding to Dean, he pats me on the shoulder once before leaving the crowded club. Shivering slightly, though the club was hot and sweaty, Penny pulled me back into the crowd and we continued to 'dance.'

Looking towards the VIP section, I noticed there was a slight problem beginning. The waitress seemed as if she was being hit on by one of the brawny men there, and he looked kind of pissed. Checking my phone, I saw it was only 11:55.

If the brawny guy was going to start beef, his cronies would help him, making it harder to beat them. But, since they're VIP, they probably won't leave the club if Dean causes a diversion.

Almost as if on cue, Dean entered the club again and headed to the DJ booth. He pulled the DJ aside, said something and the DJ nodded, passing Dean the mic. Dean cleared his throat, before slouching slightly, a goofy grin coming onto his face.

Dean had changed outfits, looking more casual in a button down grey shirt, black pants and brown loafers. "Is everyone having a good time tonight?" He shouts, and the crowd cheers.

"Well, it's time to have a better time, because there's free puppies and kittens in the parking lot!" He screams as the DJ holds up a puppy like Simba, and the crowd erupts into cheers, making a beeline for the exit. Penny gave me a surprised look, before squealing.

"I'll get one of each!" she yells at me, before running away with the crowd. Sighing, I look around. There was about 1/4 the amount of people now, and in the VIP section the curtains had been drawn and a yellow glow was coming from behind it.

I sprinted towards the VIP staircase and past a distracted bouncer, hopping up the staircase and to the top, where I saw only the brawny guy and his cronies, the waitress' dead body mutilated and tossed aside. Gulping, I look at the 6 brawny men as they glowed yellow, shifting into monsters.

Their noses flattened against their faces, and their eyes turned an ebony black. Thousands of needle-like teeth formed in their mouth, with forked navy blue tongues running over them. Their spines cracked as they hunched over, ripping their clothes completely off as thy grew to 3 meters. Their skin tinted a dirty mustard-yellow color, showing dark blue veins pulsing up and down their arms. They looked at me, slobber dripping off their teeth.

These things...they were never human. They must've been in a disguise all along-

The biggest one snarled, launching themselves at me. Raising my fist, lightning charged up it as I punched it in the forehead, sending electric currents up and down the monster as it exploded, splattering thick blue blood everywhere. Looking at my blue-bloodied fist, I gasped.

How was I this strong? Maybe that one was weak?

Looking towards the other 5 monsters, they snarled at me, running on all fours in a formation to attack. Raising my fist again, I punched each of them quickly, exploding each in turn.

I was covered in dark blue blood, now, and the room had splatters everywhere. I didn't even need my sword, huh. Raising my once silver dress up, I put my face on the inside of it, wiping off some blood from my eyes, before letting the dress relax around my body once again.

Going back down the staircase, I noticed the whole club had cleared out, even the employees. All except one person: Dean. He looked me up and down, before his gaze went to the blue-blood footprints trailing down the staircase behind me.

"Lower level demons, huh? I should've known earlier, I knew I smelt scum here. I suppose those ones were the ones who escaped earlier from Hell," he muses, before reaching inside a bag, passing me a pair of sweatpants and a sweatshirt with an ugly monkey on it. "You should probably change."

"I suppose I should..." I mutter, thinking about what Dean had said. 'Demons.' And how he could 'smell' them, too.

"Those were demons?" I ask, and Dean's nose twitches. "Yes, those disgusting things were lower-level demons. Absolutely disgusting beings, they steal and gorge themselves upon souls in Hell. Since souls are a force that grows back if you don't swiftly kill it off, they'll eat most of the soul, then let it grow back, then repeat the process."

Shuddering at Dean's words, I look back up at the stairs from where I came from. "Will someone come clean it up? I mean, it's kind of obvious what happened."

"Normal humans can't see demons the way we can, they'll see dark red blood instead of blue and mutilated humans, too. Unless..." Dean seemed to be lost in thought, now, clearly thinking of a new option.

"Unless what?"

"This was the first armies Hades released."

That means I'll be fighting enemies very soon. Will I even be prepared? I mean, if I can take them out with a single punch, kick or swing of my sword I'll be fine, right?

* * *

 **Late September**

"I'm sorry, Miss Johnson, but we are revoking your scholarship due to you having 3 C's this previous semester." The counselor says, a pitiful expression on his face. My heart dropped in my chest, _I can't believe I let this happen._

Since the event that happened back in April, slowly more demons and monster-transformations have been occurring in A-City, but I heard it's happening in other places, too. The police always struggle with combating the monsters, and have to send out a whole fleet for demons. Sure, normal people like me around the MC have been fighting back, but I'm a college student. And clearly, training for this, fighting while maintaining my grades wasn't a good balance.

"Oh." That was seriously all I could say?!

"It's clear you art a smart young lady, based off your comments from your teachers. 'Always quiet, wish they would speak up more' was a frequent comment, but clearly your professors saw a great potential in you," the counselor reads off her sheet, twirling a pencil in her left hand. She looked up at me, big black eyes scouring over my face, looking for a bit of emotion to see if I'd crumble. I could tell she took great pride in making students cry, based off the tissues that were just out of reach. "Did anything occur in the past semester to cause this slip in grades?"

If I can make up a quick lie, maybe I could stay?

"No." The words fell from my mouth before I could cover them up with a heavy lie, and I realized something.

 _I don't really want to be a veterinarian, I want to be a hero and combat the forces of Hell. And that's what I should focus on, for now._

"I see," she tuts, looking at the papers again. "Your uncle...he's a professor here, correct?"

"Yes."

"And how do you think he'll react to this?" She peered up from the papers, hoping to see crushing disappointment on my face.

"He probably won't care," I truthfully admit. Though my uncle and I loved each other, we aren't very close at all. We send a card to each other during holiday's and birthday's, and I'll wave to him in the hallway or whatever, but that's it.

"I see," she sounded slightly angry now, assuming the reason for my slip in grades was me not caring at all. "Well, now that you have had a slip in grades, you can choose to remain here and pay the tuition fee of 4,427,440.00 yen a year or-"

"I will be dropping out of college, thank you very much for your time." I stand up at the same time the counselor gasps, looking me up and down.

"B-but, there's always more chances for-"

"I'm good, thank you for your time. I've already moved out of my dorm, and my dorm-mate is still there. I'll stop attending classes, now."

Before she could utter another word, I was already gone. I headed to the cafeteria, sitting down at a table where clusters of awkward freshmen sat, comparing courses.

"Hey, freshies!" I shout out, as they all whip their heads toward me, clearly scared. Though I was tiny, I was pretty muscular I guess.

"I have a bunch of books that are barely used, and I'm selling them with a reduction of 1/5 the price, which can save you a lot of money. All books are 20,000 yen." I state, holding up 8 books. "They are usually 5,000-10,000 more, FYI."

The freshmen flocked over to me, soon bantering on books.

"I want the Psychology one!"

"No! Give me the Psychology one! I'll pay 21,000!"

"People, calm down," I hush, "we can bid for them. Let's start with the Physics book. Who wants to bid on it?"

4 out of the 20 stepped forward, reaching into their wallets for the books.

"Alright, the least you can advance by is 500 yen. Let's start at 19,000 now, since we're bidding instead of purchasing. Every time you raise a hand, the pot increases by 500, and if you put up both hands it goes to 1000. Let's start!"

There was a flurry of hands, until I sold the book for 27,500. The thing about this Uni is that it's 7/8 rich kids who have never worked a day in their lives or for anyone who their daddy didn't know, and the other 1/8 is brainy scholarship kids, which I was until my scholarship got revoked. Every rich kid here wanted to live a 'college lifestyle,' including feeling the pains that others felt, though they could easily fall back on their money. Strange, I know, but they just wanted something to complain about. They hardly pay attention in class and can either pay or blow their way through to a degree, barely stopping to look around and notice their surroundings.

Nor notice that college books are usually 15,000 yen, not 20,000. Of course, if they think they got a 'discount' they can live a 'commoner' lifestyle, joking about it with their other rich friends.

The other books sold for around 30,000 (save for the Psychology trilogy, which went for 70,000 and I had originally purchased for 50,000!) until I ended up with 222,000 yen! (In USD 2,000 dollars!) I had earned back my book costs and earned 95,000 yen!

"Lovely doing business with you all." I give a grand smile, stuffing the yen notes in my wallet. "Good luck with classes."

I ran off before anything of them could stop and think of how they paid they paid an excess, heading to the BMW where Dean awaited me,

"Wow, fancy car. Where'd you get it from?" I gasp, looking at the car. Dean's nose twitches as the tinted window rolls down, revealing Heracles in the driver's seat, hunched over the wheel.

"Hello, Lady Gina!" Heracles waves a meaty hand at me.

"Hey Heracles," I reply, "what's with the fancy car?"

"We are going to see the other gods, aligned with Zeus!" He spews out before Dean can say anything else, and I suppress a gasp of surprise. I was going to meet _actual_ gods?!

"Really?" I ask as Dean sighs. "Really, sadly. Go get dressed."

He tosses me a plastic bag, and I look up and down at the jeans and UNI green sweatshirt I was wearing. "Is this not good enough?" I ask, as Dean rolls his eyes.

"If you want to be mistaken as a trash compactor, sure, it's good enough. Now, get changed, we don't want to be late."

I scurried off to the bathroom, taking the dark blue dress out of the bag. It was a formal ball gown, with a sweeping skirt that touched the floor, and a satin sweet heart neckline with two off-the-shoulder long sleeves. Damn, this is the fanciest thing I've ever seen! Putting on the silver pumps, I reach into my own bag, pulling out the pearl string necklace I had found on the floor of class today.

I don't think anyone will mind if I use it. Looping around my neck, I quickly tug my long red hair into a tight bun, some loose curls falling out and framing my face. Quickly, I exit the bathroom, strutting towards the car. Dean looks up from his phone towards me in amazement, before his usual 'idgaf' look flashes on his face.

"You took 20 minutes, we won't have as much time to get there now if there's traffic," he complains, holding open the backseat door for me as I shoved my skirts into the car, before plomping down on the seat.

"I think I went as fast as possible, noting that I zipped up my dress by myself," I spit back, as Heracles looks back at me. I had just noticed the both of them were wearing fine silk tuxes, and that Heracles' beard was tamed more, closer to his sharp jawline and his brows had been trimmed. Hell, a few inches of his hair were trimmed off so he could slick his hair back without a ponytail! And Dean's hair was slightly teased so it didn't appear as long, but yet it made him look even more dangerous.

Reaching into my bag, I pull out my mascara tube as Heracles veered off into traffic, shifting the car around. Looking at the mascara tube, I decided it would be better if I didn't stab my eye then attempt to put on makeup with Heracles' reckless driving. Besides, my makeup is fine the way it is right now.

After 3 hours of reckless driving, we finally cross over into T-City, pulling into a shabby neighborhood and parking on the side.

"We're here," Dean says, opening the door for me as I step out, almost squashing a poor rat.

"This is the place?" I ask, as Dean pinches his nose. "This is the address Zeus has given us..." he grumbles, as Heracles knocks on the apartment door labelled 'V.'

"Password?" A voice asks, as Heracles looks at Dean. "Say it," Heracles grumbles, and Dean facepalms.

"Zeus is the coolest."

A faint giggle was heard on the other side of the door as it swung open to reveal an elegant ballroom, completed with twelve chairs in a round circle, the largest with a beefy man sitting in it.

"Welcome to Zeus' council for the events to come," a woman drawled, taking a sip of white wine with her cherry red lips. She swished her long blonde hair over her shoulder, crystalline blue eyes glimmering a thousand shades under the warm lighting, hung under thick black lashes. "Thanatos, it's good to see you again."

"As of you, Aphrodite," he responds and I feel my eyes widen. I thought it would've been a joke!

Looking around the circle, I noticed some chairs were empty.

"Please, sit." A voice boomed, and I look up to see a white haired man, his locks falling down to his shoulder. Fierce golden eyes peered down at me from their high perch, setting themselves in a strong-jawed face. I take this as Zeus...

Looking towards Dean and Heracles, I noticed them sit in two of the three empty seats next to each other, and I sat in between the both.

"Introduce yourself, _human._ " A long, chestnut haired woman demands, her hair pulled into a tight bun with curls framing her face, some loose curls elegantly falling out. A silver crown was placed on her head, looking like twinkling stars. Her eyebrows were thin to the extreme, hanging over sharp deep-set emerald eyes.

All eyes turned towards me, and suddenly I felt like an abandoned ant on the sidewalk, surrounded by children. "Uh, hi..." I stand up, looking around the room, slightly nervous. "I'm Gina Johnson."

"Where are you from, Gina Johnson?" A sweet, motherly voice asked, and I turn to a woman on slightly the plumper side. Her round face was rosy, and her honey brown eyes were under soft dark brown hair, pulled into a loose french braid that coiled into a loose bun on the lower side of her head. She seemed like a homely woman, easy to rely on.

"I'm from Hawai'i," I answer, and the gods muttered among themselves for a moment.

"In short, what brings you here?" Another woman asks, this time she had dark brown hair, nearly black, trailing down in soft waves. A silver headband, similar to Wonder Woman's, was adorned on her head, matching her owlish grey eyes. She had more of a pronounced nose that fit her heart shaped face, and she had a calm but intense presence in the room.

Why was I here? I mean, I've been training long and hard mostly because that's what's been expected of me, because I need to protect humanity-

"I'm here because I want to join all of you in the game and prevent Hades' monsters from winning over humanity." I truthfully respond, and the room became quiet.

"You do know what that entails, do you not, Gina Johnson?" The man presumed to be Zeus asks, causing all eyes to turn to me. "Humanity will have their eyes on you. Once you've began, there's no turning back."

"I know this, already. And I will stay alive, no longer how long it takes, to vanquish all of his forces that dare threaten humanity. I swear." I reply, and Zeus leans back.

"Then sit down, human, welcome to the council."

I nearly sighed in relief, but held it in as I bowed graciously. "Thank you."

I sit down in the chair, and the moment I do Zeus goes into a long speech about the matters of the council to everyone. Basically, he summarized that Hades will start launching attacks soon, and we should be prepared. Soon the council was finished, and we all rose from our seats.

"Council adjourned." Zeus declared, as all the gods seemed more relaxed.

"Oh! Aren't you just a cute little human?" A voice asked, and I turn to see the kind-looking goddess from earlier.

"Oh, uh, thank you." I smile, as her brown eyes shimmed with happiness and light. "I'm Hestia, it's wonderful to meet the face of humanity," she shakes my hand, and my eyes widen. "Face of humanity?"

"Well, that's what the gods are calling you now, you know. You are representing them when you fight Hades' monsters," she informs, and I nod. "I see..."

Hestia was a warm and chatty woman, who filled me in on the matters of the council. It was composed of Zeus, Hestia, Aphrodite, Athena, Apollo, Hera, Artemis, Hermes, Eros, Thanatos (Dean), Heracles and I. A perfect 12, which was Zeus' favorite number, apparently.

"I don't wish to sound rude, but what about the other Big 12?" I ask as her face falls slightly.

"They sided with Hades," she informs, "but Poseidon is the only neutral one, since he is friends with both sides and the ordeal is occurring over land. Ares left after hearing that there'd be more fighting on Hades' side, Dionysus and Hades are good friends, Demeter was promised that if she joined Hades' side that once they won Persephone could stay all year long with her and Hades, and Hephaestus didn't want to see Aphrodite. The only reason he made you the sword hilt was because Zeus wouldn't allow him to leave until he made a weapon. There's some others who went over to Hades' side, but this is just a summary."

"I see..." I respond, and Hestia then went into a long winded speech about churning butter, for some reason.

After communicating with everyone, Dean and I left without Heracles as he would had made plans already for the night.

"Later this month, Hades and Zeus have agreed to begin the game officially," Dean explains, hands gripping the steering wheel.

"But haven't they already had monster attacks?" I ask, and Dean nods. "Think of this as trial-and-error. Those were mostly extra souls who had a chance of being reborn if they succeeded in a task given to them, but none of them succeeded. Most were thwarted by you, matter of fact, but some others took care of them, too."

"Did they also have deals with a god?" I ask, and Dean shook his head. "Most of them were parties of people or military groups, but they struggled. You're probably going to be one of the only people who will be able to do this task."

I felt another burden unloading upon my shoulders. I would be all alone in terms of strength, with only a few near my level. I'd have to deal with god-level threats by myself, because if I didn't it'd be game over for everyone.

"Are we going back to A-City?" I ask, changing the subject as we pull onto the highway. Dean looks at me, arching a brow. "Do you _want_ to go back to A-City?"

"Honestly, no. Though I love Penny to death, I feel like she's forcing herself to wait around for me to be more 'social' or whatever, and I can't do that to her. Besides, it holds a lot of bad memories," I answer truthfully, "I feel like a damn failure because of the Uni."

"It only happened because of the training," he muttered, before sighing. "I have another apartment in Z-City where you can go, but it's not as nice as the one in A-City. This one has one room, a kitchen and a bathroom, but it allows pets."

"So I can take Cat and Tater Tots with me?" I ask, slightly excited. When the club incident had occurred, Penny had grabbed two cats and a dog in the rush. So, she took the dog and named it 'Winnie,' and kept it hidden in the dorms. I had taken the two cats, giving one to Dean. I named mine Tater Tots, while Dean was original and named it 'cat.'

The club incident was a bit baffling to explain, but here's the simple version. During the hour Dean was gone, he had called in some of his own employees to go into shelters and take all the dogs and cats possible, bringing them to a pen outside the club. They also got some off the street, too. Since then, the stray animal percentage has gone from 40% to 2%.

"You can take Tater Tots, I've become...acquainted with Cat." Dean blushes slightly, not willing to admit he really cares for the cat, who loved to snuggle and fall asleep on Dean's chest. Stifling a giggle, I nod.

"Alright, I'll let you use it. We can go to A-City tonight, put your stuff in this car, then head over to Z-City."

"Deal," I respond, as we drove back, talking about random things. When we got to the apartment, I texted Penny a quick message explaining that I got booted out of college but was taking an internship in Z-City, so I was leaving that night. I snapped my phone shut, going back to packing my bags.

All I owned in this room was clothes and some makeup products, honestly. Grabbing the cat carrier, I put the morbidly obese tabby kitten in the carrier. We weren't overfeeding him at all, the kitten had a medical condition where his metabolism is hella slow, so that's why we call him tater tots. Not only is it his favorite food, but he's also shaped like one and kinda resembled one with its fur. He fell asleep the moment he went in the carrier, and I rolled my eyes, going over to the car where Dean awaited.

"Aren't you going to get your stuff out of the apartment?" I ask, and Dean pauses, before shaking his head.

"I'm going back to work, our training if over." He informs and my jaw drops. Dean and I had grown to be friends, so this was really crushing.

"Why?" I ask, trying to prevent tears from coming to my eyes. He kept his eyes on the road, not daring to look at me.

"I was told to train you until the first council meeting you were invited to, after that I'd go back to my job."

He quickly changed the subject as we crossed over the border into Z-City, and I followed along in conversation, but was slightly upset. Finally, we pulled into a shabby neighborhood, and the car stopped.

"I'll help you with your bags," Dean offers, opening his car door and pulling out a couple bags of luggage while I pull out the cat carrier. Looking at the apartment complex, it was kind of boring. It was made of cement and steel, with one of the walls covered in graffiti labeled 'Smiley was here,' with a giant spray-painted red smiley face on it. Ignoring it, I followed Dean up a flight of stairs as he unlocked 3B, revealing a small dusty apartment, with a shabby green couch, plain white walls, a small TV from the early 2000s, and in the bedroom it was a plain bed and dresser. The kitchen was pretty big for the apartment, but mostly because it was merged with the small living room.

Setting Tater Tots down, I take the suitcases and place them next to the couch, walking with Dean back to the car in silence.

He pulls open his driver's door, and I stop him. "Death, I'm going to miss you," I state, using his real name. He looks at me, red eyes soft.

"This isn't the last time we'll meet, Gina. I'll be seeing you one way or another, whether on the other side of the game when it ends, or on your death bed."

I nod, before pulling the tall man into a hug. He froze for a moment, before hugging me back. A wet drop landed on the top of my head, but it was unnoticeable. Feeling tears prick my eyes, I sniffle, pulling back from the hug.

"Don't forget to text me how life is going, or else I'll never forgive you," I spit out, and Death chuckles, sitting in his car.

"I won't." With that, he slammed the door shut before driving off. Standing there for a moment, I reached into my pocket, pulling out the keys he had given me to the apartment. It was an old gold key, and on it was a chibi grim reaper, holding a scythe. Chuckling to myself, I head back up to the apartment room, locking it behind me.

* * *

 **JANUARY**

Sitting down after my 35k, I chugged the water in my hand. It had taken me a couple hours since I changed my regimen again, but I bet I'll be able to speed it up soon. After all, I'm apparently a demi-god, remember? Rubbing my blurry eyes, I put my glasses back on, helping me slightly. Of course being a demi-god didn't help with my eye sight...

The glasses quickly darkened, turning into sunglasses. The optician accidentally gave me the wrong kid of lenses, but these work.

A soccer ball rolled up to my feet, and a pattering of footsteps approached me. "Ay, lady, can you pass me that?" A voice asked, and I turn to see the biggest butt-chinned kid I've ever seen. Looking around him, I noticed he was playing alone.

"Yeah, sure," I reply, standing up and kicking it over to him. He instictively kicked it back, until the both of us were kicking it back and forth, trying to see who would slip up first. After a bunch of passes, I kick it a bit too far, and it bounces away from him. He runs over to it, picking it up in his hands as a business man walks by, looking at the kid. The business man didn't seem to old, but it was still creepy...

"What're you looking at?" The kid asks, evidently creeped out too.

The man pauses, regaining his composure. "Hey kid, were you messing with a big crab monster?" He asks, and I arch a brow, sitting back down on the bench. That sounds freaky.

"Huh? He was asleep in the park, and I drew some nipples on him."

That's one bratty kid!

The business man sighs, before turning to walk away when a giant red blur jumps down from the top of the building, leering down at the child. It looked like a giant crab with hairy man legs, a vicious grin on face.

"Found you!" He spits out, bringing down a claw to decapitate the kid. In the blink of an eye, I grab the kid, pulling him away from the crab as it thrusts its claw into the Earth. The business man looks at me in shock, before turning back to the kid.

"Kid! This giant crab is after you! Get outta here!" He yells at the kid, and the butt-chin boy looks startled, pointing at the soccer ball by the crab monster's feet.

"But...my soccer ball."

The crab steps on the ball, causing the kid to gasp. Standing back up, I pass the kid over to the business man.

"You take the kid away, I'll handle this, business man." I inform, cracking my neck.

"You can't do that! You're a woman! And I'm not a business man!" he shouts back, "You won't be strong enough to defeat the crab monster!"

Arching a thick red brow, I step back, holding my hands up. We're just wasting time here. "Fine, fine. It'll just make it much more funny when I rescue you from the lobster."

"It's a crab, kukuku!" The crab monster shouts, as the kid turns around, running away.

"Come on, don't tell me you're going to protect the ugly brat. I'm going to go get him, kukuku!" the crab says, taking a step forward, but the business man steps forward, halting the crab.

"Don't tell me you're going to kill a kid over a harmless prank!"

The crab grins eerily, "I've already mutilated many people, this is just another chip in the block. Whoever makes fun of me gets clawed, no exception! Kukuku!"

His eyes turned white, veins twitching in anger. "And he used permanent marker to draw nipples on me! Look at these pincers!"

He clicked them together in frustration, "I can't use a towel to wipe it off with!"

"Oh, you should've said that," I reply, and everyone turns to me as I whip out my after-workout towel from my bag alongside my water bottle. "I had an extra one after my workout that I didn't use yet."

Everyone paused, looking at me. "Why didn't you say so, kukuku? Wipe it off, human!"

"'Kay," I reply, winking at the business man. I'll let the business guy try to handle this since he was so arrogant previously. Walking up to the crab, I uncap my water bottle, pouring it all over the cloth. Before the crab could do anything, I twist the towel and pull down the back of his undies to expose the pale moon that is his butt, and I put a little force into the towel as I whip it towards his ass.

The crab screams in pain, thrashing his claws around and throwing me and the business-dude back a few feet. I roll onto my feet while business guy lands on his ass, laughing.

"You look like a cheesy villain from an anime I used to watch!" He cackles, beginning to loosen his blue tie, brown eyes gleaming with determination. "And that villain was defeated by a hero."

"You're both going to be mutilated, kukuku!"

"Ever since I was little, I wanted to be a hero, not a business man." Business guy continues, ignoring the crab's previous statement, "And heroes could send guys like you flying with one punch!" He threw away his blazer,.

Hey, I could do that! With any body part, really. But I'll stick to my sword for now, it's much more exciting.

"Screw looking for a job, bring it on!" he shouts, as the crab lifts a sharpened claw.

"Sucks for you, because you're a lousy hero!" The crab laughs, repeatedly punching business guy while shouting out mean things. Business guy tumbles to the ground, and the crab lifts a claw.

"You won't even die a hero, but you will die!" The crab swears, lifting his claw to deliver the final blow, smashing it down the moment the guy launches himself up onto the crabs' arm, before pushing himself up to the crab's eye. He loops his tie around it before jumping off, tugging it so all the crab's organs fly everywhere.

Come on, I could've made crab for dinner tonight!

The kid peeks around the corner, watching in awe of his protector defeating the crab. The crab's empty shell fell to the floor, as the guy breathed heavily over it.

"That was...interesting," I mutter, looking over at the kid, and I approached him, withdrawing my phone from my bag.

"Hey, kid, I'm going to call your parents to come pick you up. What's their number?" I ask, going to the phone section.

"No need, my grandpa is here," the butt-chinned kid says, pointing at a limo. Before I could say anything else, the kid ran to the limo as the driver opened the door for him, quickly closing it and then driving off.

Looking back at the business man, I noticed he had sat down by a bench and was trying to calm himself. Looking at the crab, I noticed something was awry.

"The arm meat didn't fly out," I mutter, walking over to the crab.

"What are you doing?" The business guy asks, and I turn to him.

"You know, if I realized I could've used the crab for food I would've taken care of it myself. There would've been more meat." I bluntly inform, causing him to sweat drop.

"That's kind of gross, seeming that he used to be human." he points at the legs to make a point, but I roll my eyes.

"Listen, you're a business man and can afford much more than I can. If an expensive food item comes around," I step towards the crabs shoulder, raising my right food down on the shoulder, "I'm not going to waste it. Crab is expensive, especially in this part of Z-City."

Crashing my foot down, a large crack was heard. Not from cracking the crab shell, but putting my foot through the cement. The body of the crab covered up the whole I left in the cement as I pulled my foot out. Picking up the crab claw, I noticed how it was slightly heavy.

Great! It's not empty!

Setting the arm down, I walked around to the other side, repeating the process.

"I'm not a business man," the suited man says, and I turn to him, picking up the crab pincer.

"You're not?"

"Before this, I was looking for a job, but was hardcore rejected at the interview. I didn't care about anything while fighting the crab-monster, and that's why I was willing to die a hero," he explains, as I bite my cheek.

"That's the stupidest reason," I retort, reaching into my bag and pulling out a handkerchief. Putting the crab pincer under my arm, I walk up to him, dabbling away at the blood on his forehead.

"What are you doing?" he stutters, backing up as I hold up the handkerchief between two fingers, dangling it for him to see. "I was wiping away your blood, but you can do it if you're going to complain."

Tossing it to him, he quickly dabs at the blood. "Why do you think it's a stupid reason?" he asks, as I puff out my cheeks.

"The police will just take credit for it, as they have done for every monster attack since forever. It's been going on for decades, I don't know why they've increased recently." Technically the reason for the increase is Hades wants to make more monsters and the previous ones were just test-drives, but I don't need to explain that to him.

"Oh." He looks down, as I hold out the crab pincer to him. "Listen, I know it doesn't sound like much, but I'm an electrician and the other day I was at a convenience store a few blocks from here. They're looking for a new cashier part-time right now, and if I put in a good word it could be satisfactory for now."

"Yeah, I'd like that," he smiles at me, taking the crab pincer in hand, using both hands to hold it. Picking up the other one, I smile at him, shoving it back under my arm.

"Good to know, I'm Gina."

"Saitama."

"Nice to meet you, Saitama. Here's the store's number, just tell them you know me and they'll give me a ring. I'll say you're a childhood friend or something," I put the pincer in a wrapped up towel, so it doesn't leak out juices.

"Thank you so much," he quickly bows, "I hope that the next time we meet I'll be stronger and won't be so easily injured."

"I wish you the best of luck, then."

"And when we do, I'll give you this back then," he informs, holding up the bloody handkerchief, and I wince.

"It's fine, you don't have to. Just throw it away."

"Oh."

"Alright, see ya." I quickly wave, eager to go away and put the crab on ice so I can start using parts to cook. I'm so excited, I haven't had crab since I left Hawai'i!

* * *

 **February**

"Shield!" I mutter, forming my arms in an 'x' pattern as a large force surrounds me in a bubble like state, crackling with electricity. Grinning, I released it, breathing heavily. It used up a lot of energy, but I'll certainly be practicing it!

"Alright, test 402 was successful," I mutter, checking off another tallymark on the sheet, looking at the next list. "So maybe this one will be successful."

Placing my hands at my side, I imagine two shields underneath my hands, as I exert a wave of electricity from my hands, pushing me off the shield. Mentally raising the shield, I wince, biting my lip as I try to keep myself suspended in air. Controlling electricity forms I created off my body was a lot harder than when it's on my body.

The shields waver, before wobbling out and I crash. I had mentally counted 5 seconds, which was 1 second short of my record. Maybe I wasn't focused enough?

Biting my lip harder, I try again.

And again.

And again.

* * *

 **April**

Checking my computer, I lazily scroll through blogs that have popped up on Rumblr, a website dedicated to telling me the latest and greatest information regarding everything to politics to fanart.

Looking in the 'new business' section on a Z-City blog, I notice that a large reblogging has accumulated on a certain post. Furrowing my brows, I double tap on my mousepad, pulling up the link.

A bunch of confetti rained down the page, welcoming me as the 9,999th visitor from Z city. Arching a brow, I scrolled through the website as it spoke of the Anti-disaster Hero Association. It had a pretty official logo of an eagle, and was apparently created by Agoni, the guy who owns a large shipping company that makes over 100 million a year. Apparently the program was approved by the government, and was a hero program. People who applied and completed the test would be an official hero, ranked either in a position with the classes A, B and C. If I passed the test I'd be deemed a pro-hero and would be paid with collected donations. All registered heroes are professional heroes in the public eye, but if I don't register I'm a weirdo?!

How the hell am I supposed to defeat monsters by being a weirdo?! Looking at the application info, it said the Z-City application was the 12th examination and would be coming to town next week at the multi-used ampitheater. I go to the application center, typing out my information before pressing 'enter' on the screen. Pretty basic stuff: name, weight, height, gender, age and city.

Closing my laptop, I adjust the white button up that was under my dark blue blazer, making sure it was tucked properly into the matching pencil skirt. Sliding my feet into the black pumps, I grab the leather suitcase, pushing up my large glasses on my nose.

I was an electrician, as hilarious as it sounds. It was my own business where I fixed people's electrical powers with the 'zap of my fingers.' They thought it was a quirky saying, but they never realized how true it was. I picked up some other skills to help, but other than that it was pretty much me zapping stuff until it functioned.

Locking the door behind me, I rubbed my thumb over the cheeky grim reaper key chain, before heading down the stairs and to the cab I borrowed from my neighbor daily. He was a night-time taxi driver, and as long as the cab was back by 7 pm and I refilled the gas I could use it. Hopping in the McRonald's smelling car, I pressed the keys into the ignition, sputtering it to life. Looking at the watch on my wrist, I sigh.

 **8 am**

Great, the person is at the edge of Z-City on the opposite side from where I live. I guess I'll just have to complain about a train or something...

* * *

 **1 week later, first day of May**

Arriving to the amphitheater without my glasses, I noticed a lot of weirdos in costumes doing freaky stretches. Rolling my eyes, I shoved my hands in my pockets. I was the only one not in costume.

I wore a pair of grey running shorts, a black tank top with a daisy on it, and my long red hair was pulled back in a french braid. The black running shoes were knock-off and old, but they'd do for now until I did my taxes.

I got in the women's line, as all the women took off their shirts to reveal sports bras.

"We'll take these 10," an official says, pointing at a gaggle of scantily-clad women and me. Sighing, I followed the official as we made our way over to the station.

"Hey, is your red hair, like, real?" A girl next to me drawled, causing some group attention on me.

"Uh, yeah, it is." I respond as a few girls giggle.

"So, you're a foreigner, right?" Another one asks, twirling a long blonde curl around her finger. I nod, causing every girl in the group to laugh.

"Oh, are you trying to apply to be a hero here to have a work permit?" A pixie-cut purple haired girl asks, causing the group to laugh. My cheeks tint as red as my hair as I keep my anger pent up.

Stay calm, Gina, they're minuscule problems.

"No." I inhaled through my nose, standing as proud as I could, "I came here for college. I went to A-City Uni on a scholarship." The smiles faltered off their faces, as a brunette's nose twitches.

"Just because you're book smart doesn't mean you'll stand a chance here," she spits out, "we're the Kits, and we're an upcoming idol-hero group. Just run along now, won't you?"

That explained the cat-patterned clothing they wore, even their lingerie was somehow cat-patterned. They all had matching kitty ears, alongside a paw tattoo on their wrist.

"Whatever," I grumble as we went to the first station:side to side jumps.

"You need 25 in a 30 second time limit to pass. We have five lines, who wants to go first?" The official asks as the girls rush to a line, cattily fighting over a spot.

I wait a minute, watching most of them barely pass as I and the four others from the group step up. I ended up on the last line, as I rolled my neck.

I won't try to hard on this.

When the official blew his whistle, my feet shifted causing a light crack on the concrete as I bounced back and forth over the line, ending up doing 600 in 30 seconds. I didn't try too hard, but even those results kind of caught me off guard. I guess the training has really paid off.

 **1500 meter dash**

I quickly sprinted towards the finishing line, leaving a cloud of dust behind me as I finished the race within seconds.

 **Weight lifting**

"Ugh! This is so heavy!" The brunette claimed, arms wobbling as she lifted a 50 lb weight over her head. I step forward, placing the maximum weight of 500 on each side before lifting it over my head with one hand. The girls gasped as I look back at them, flashing them a white smile.

"I guess being a halfie isn't so bad now, isn't it?"

Their faces fall, looking darkly at me. "Just because you pass the physical doesn't mean you pass the entire thing," a blue haired girl spits out as I shrug. "At least I'm not weak."

They frown, before we make our way to the next station.

 **Shot put**

Hurling the ball as fall as possible, it went through the roof, tearing out a chunk of cement.

 **Vertical jump**

Jumping up high, I noticed I was about to hit the large ceiling and winced as I felt my whole body bust through the concrete roof. It actually doesn't hurt at all, huh. I went up a few more meters before landing back on the roof, poking my head through the hole to see everyone looking at me.

"Whoops!" I nervously laugh, before falling back down and landing on my feet.

 **Whack a mole**

Quickly hitting each mole, just as the time ran out I broke the machine. Turning to the official, I bowed deeply.

"I'm so sorry!"

"Oh, uh, no worries?"

 **Punching machine**

I can't break anymore stuff! Lifting my fist at the punching machine, I barely touched it, causing the punching machine to fly back and hit the wall, crumbling to pieces.

No!

The official quickly escorts me to a room, where they hook me up to a lying detector.

"So," the man asks, looking over the list. "What's your name?"

"Gina Johnson."

"Age?"

"I'm turning 20 this year."

"Weight and height?"

"54 kg and 1.5 meters."

"Alright, so, what's your reason for being a hero?" He asks, as I consider telling him the real reason.

I'll just summarize my part of the deal, then.

"I want to protect the people from monsters, they deserve that much." I inform as he writes something on his paper. He continues to ask me more questions, before telling me I'll get my results at the end of the hour.

"This took a lot of time, we'll just switch to written exams next time," he muttered to the technician, who gives a short nod. Rolling my eyes, I stand up and leave, waiting in the locker room until I got my results.

* * *

"I can't believe I got a rank C! It was only because that old dude was upset I didn't give some girly reason to do the exam. Besides, who the hell cares about politics anyway?!" I rant, sitting on top of a giant lizard, complaining about the exam results.

"Did you try your best?" It rasps, coughing up smoke. It wasn't that big, actually. Maybe more like medium-sized giant?

Yeah, that's more accurate.

"Not really, the physical exams were really easy and I kind of guessed my way through the questions. They got salty the other day when I beat up a demon-level monster the other day after an A-level dude went out of commission from it," I groan, as the lizard's eyes widen.

"D-Demon level?" It stutters, and I arch a brow. "Aren't you also a demon-level one, monster?"

"I am not a monster! I am the great Ragnor-rawr, and I will take over the city!" Steam spews from its nostrils, flaring up into the sky.

"I'm pretty sure you're demon or dragon level," I respond, "which is why I lured you to the fields outside the city."

"W-what?" It asks, "B-but we were just talking together!" It bellows, and I shrug, withdrawing the sword hilt.

"I wanted to use you as a test subject, and I wanted to rant about my problems. It was a win-win situation," I respond as its yellow eyes widen even more.

"T-test subject?" It rumbles as I stand up on its belly, putting electricity into my hands, causing the sword to form. Jumping up and thrusting myself upward into the air with electric currently, I dive down, plunging the sword into its heart as the lizard gets completely fried, turning to ash instantaneously.

Coughing through the ash, I tumble to the ground, rolling to a stop as the ash blows away from the field, slowly dissipating away from its larger-than-life pile. Looking at the sword in my hand, the blade fades away, leaving some sparks in its midst.

"I guess it is pretty powerful, then," I mumble, before pocketing the sword in my hoodie, hopping onto the broomstick.

"Alright, time to practice." Placing an electric current under me, I raise the broomstick a few feet in the air, slowly moving forward with me on it. Grinning to myself, I reach into my pocket, withdrawing the list as I place a positive check mark on the broomstick test.

Floating back to the ground, I sit criss-cross in the field, watching the clouds lazily drift past. Lately there's been an obnoxious buzz in my ear in the city, and I realized I was able to hear the electrical currents buzzing in the air. I had quickly gotten used to it, but I did enjoy the peacefulness that this field had offered me.


	3. Chapter 3

**8 months later, Late November**

"You want me to change hero classes?" I ask, leaning back in my chair. It was one of those fancy modern chairs that looked like it was made at some fancy IKEA for an over-exaggerated price. The old man scratched the back of his neck, his bald head shimmering with sweat in the pale fluorescent light. "Yes, we've been trying to figure out where to place you for a few months now. You are at the top of the C class, correct?"

I nod, as he shifts through a couple more papers. "I see, and you've been racking up some...particularly ferocious monsters." His eyes widen at the images, and I shrug. He obviously didn't review the images before asking me to come, so it shows he's a simple worker. They couldn't send someone up higher to ask me about this, possibly meaning they've been interviewing others.

"They're pretty easy to take care of," I wave off, blowing a piece of hair out of my face, obviously bored. "So, I'll be heading up to B class then?" I ask, eager to leave the meeting. It was extremely hot in this room, and I was tempted to snatch the papers from the sweaty man's hands to fan myself. If this was a multi-million dollar company, why can't they install some damn air conditioner?

"Not quite. You see, there are multiple heroes similar to you who are extremely advanced, but are in a 'lower' class," he informs, withdrawing a manila packet from his coat pocket, sliding it over to me. I resist the urge to roll my eyes, C class was obviously the lowest one. Opening it up, I find a packet about the classes.

"'S class?'" I read, arching a brow. "S is a lot lower on the alphabet than A, if you haven't realized."

"S stands for 'specialized' class. It is a unique class composed of a smaller amount of people who will be paid handsomely for their deeds, but will have higher level monsters to take care of," the man informs, probably from a memorized definition, pulling up a map on his iPad of the Main Continent, pointing at Z-City.

"Since you already live in Z-City, we'd like to have you apply to make this your official city of residence. My co-workers and I have noticed you do not have any place of residence listed under your name?" He asks, and I nod. "I'm living in my friend's apartment for now," I reply, thoughts drifting to Dean.

"I see. Well, you and a few others have the chance to be ranked up to S-class, so we will be having a rank placement meeting sometime next week, would you like to try for it?" He asks, and I shrug.

"Why not?"

* * *

 **1 week later**

"Thank you," I wave to the taxi driver, handing him the fee before promptly slamming the door shut, turning to the large ex-military-turned-Hero Base building in A-City. Pulling my jacket tight around me, I quickly pace over to the entrance, opening it to see a burly security guard.

"ID?" He asks as I hold up the invitation, and he nods, pointing towards the sleek black elevator. "Take this to the basement floor, then head down the staircase from there until the bottom floor."

"Thank you." I nod, hopping over to the elevator and quickly shutting it as it blasts downwards. I hold onto the handles, feeling the static on the metal handles.

It just had to be metal, of course. Regardless, free electricity for me.

It was soon over at the elevator doors shifted open, revealing a plain waiting room filled with employees of the company. Ignoring them, I head over to the staircase, beginning the 5 floor descent to the bottom.

Finally, I came to the final room at the end of the staircase and I pushed the door open to reveal a large gymnasium, a huge mat placed on the floor.

"Ah, you're the last one here," an employee says, donned in a sleek black suit. His black hair was neatly trimmed and swept back, but looked especially greasy under the pale flourescent lights. "May you close the door behind you?"

Nodding, I quickly close it, examining the 15 other contenders. They all were various shapes and sizes, some looking completely normal while others were especially abnormal.

"Now, let me explain the rules. All 16 of you are contestants, but 8 are extremely powerful criminals whose images have not been released to the public. You have been randomly placed in a bracket to go to the final round," the employee points at a whiteboard on the wall, reading all of our hero names that go up to the top of a bracket. "You will fight whoever is in your bracket, and at the end of each fight you have to identify whether they are a criminal or a hero. While this will not disqualify you if you guess incorrectly, it will help us weed out your problem solving skills. Even if you make it to the top of the bracket, that doesn't mean you'll be the number one hero. You all have been given fake hero names on your invitation to risk identifying other heroes, though you may have already heard or seen each other previously."

Looking at my invitation, I looked at the hero name. 'Red Riding Hood.'

I hadn't been giving a hero name yet, so this will work for now. But if this is my future hero name, I suppose I'll reject it.

"Question!" A man asks, wearing a blue polo and khaki shorts raises his hand stiffly, pushing up his glasses.

"Yes?"

"How will heroes make it to the S-Class?"

"By placing within the top 4, if you are a hero and haven't made it, you will be placed somewhere within A-B ranks."

"But, doesn't that mean a villain could as easily get in the top 4?" A long blue-haired bishie asks, gold eyes curious.

"Yes."

"What happens if a villain places in the top 4?" I ask, raising my hand, causing all eyes to go to me. Gulping, I averted their gazes as the business man sighs.

"They shall be released from all their previous charges, and won't return to jail. Everyone here has agreed to fight to their hardest, so the heroes will try to beat the villains for a S rank, and the villains will try to beat the heroes for freedom."

Everyone looked around the room, automatically suspicious of each other. Twiddling with the thick braid in my boxer-braid hairstyle, my gaze drifted over the people. All of them were clean cut, which made sense. The heroes will automatically suspect a gruffy looking person as a villain, but that's not always the placement.

"I have a question," a fat man in a purple suit asks, stroking his bushy brown mustache. He looked like Ron Swanson in a bodymorph suit!

"Ah, yes."

"If a villain successfully disguises as a hero, does that award the villain points?" He asks, and I arch a brow. That made him seem awfully villainy, but of course, maybe he's just gruff around the edges.

"Yes, and vice versa. Only the best heroes can disguise as villains as infiltration tactics, and only the best villains can disguise as heroes." The greasy-haired man says, checking his pocket watch. "We should start now. The first match shall be between Scorpion and Octopus."

Two people stepped forward, and I observed their characteristics. One was an extremely young girl with curly teal hair and a black pencil skirt with a white button down shirt, and she was looking at her black nails, obviously bored. She had the aura of an older woman, though, but she was shorter than me. The other was a man wearing a spandex black suit, carrying a large wooden spear with a hard, pointed tip.

"I don't want to fight a child!" He complains at the greasy man, who ignores him as he pointed to the bleachers.

"You may all sit there for now," he states, as we all waddle over there. Some sit further than others, but I sit in the front row, eager to observe my competition.

"The only rules is to not hurt audience members," the man declares, and my eyes widen.

"We can _murder_ people?!" Someone shouts as the man nods. "A hero must go through such acts at a time to defend the people."

I mean, I have murdered before, but I no longer considered them people. They were monsters...I don't know if I could kill an innocent person, though there's a 50/50 chance it is a criminal.

"Start!"

Immediately, Scorpion rushed forward with his spear, and a weird green glow surrounded Octopus as she floated in air. The spear was pulled from Scorpion's hand, twirling around to point at his throat.

"Surrender," Octopus spits out, green eyes looking down at a trembling Scorpion. "I-I surrender."

The green glow directed the spear back into Scorpion's hands as Octopus floated back down, hair floating back into place. I could fly with my electricity, but only for a couple hours maximum by myself, three hours with a broom.

"Octopus wins. Now, what are your guesses? Hero or villain?" Mr. Greasy asks, as Scorpion looks at Octopus.

"Hero, she could've killed me in a heartbeat. She chose not to, which makes her a hero."

Octopus looked at the referee, "Hero, he didn't want to attack a 'child.'"

The referee nods, looking at Scorpion. "You are eliminated of course, but are free to observe the rest of the tournament from the stands." I see, so they won't reveal what we are the moment we are eliminated so we can't narrow it down. The two walked back to the stands, as the referee looked at the board.

"Next is Toy Boy and Cherry Chic!"

Cherry Chic had Spiderman-like powers to shoot acidic red juice out of her fingers while Toy Boy could manipulate plastic objects, but Cherry Chic just melted it. After 15 minutes the battle ended with Cherry Chic winning. She smiled a gummy smile, "I think that Toy Boy is a hero, because he never directly applied the plastic to my skin."

A dark look flashed on Toy Boy's face for a moment, before he smiled. "I think that Cherry Chic is a hero, because she never shot the acid at my body directly but always a little close to scare me off."

She flushes, turning to him. "Was it that obvious?"

He laughs a bit, giving her a white smile. "Yeah, sorry if I made you lose your edge."

There was something going on, but I decided to brush it off as they walked back to their seats. I guess they could both be villains who knew each other and tried to give each other points, though in the end it may not help them earn detection points.

Soon, the attractive blue haired man called 'Blueberry' competed against Boat Babe, and she instantly lost after Blueberry delivered as swift key to her knee, making her fall over as he pinned her to the floor. She stuttered as she admitted her defeat, stunned by the attractive man. He called her a villain while she called him a hero.

Next was Moon Man and Fruit Dude, who battled for 40 minutes until Fruit Dude passed out cold. We waited a few minutes until Fruit Dude woke up saying "villain!" and Moon Man said "hero." Fruit Dude fell back to unconsciousness, and was carried off by medics.

Next was Purple Panda, and he stroked his bushy brown mustache as he faced the man in the Blue Polo (coincidentally called 'Blue Polo). The battle continued on for about 30 minutes with the two evenly matched, and in the end Blue Polo tackled Purple Panda by accidentally tripping. Both of them called each other hero.

After this was Matilda and Dino Dan. Dino Dan was obviously a villain, especially when he lunged forward the moment the time started with extended claws and ripped out Matilda's beating heart, before crushing it with his nails. Blood splattered everywhere and my eyes widened.

Why would he ever do that? He's obviously a villain!

"You shall receive no points for the hero-villain guess, due to your opponent being terminated," the referee states, before reading off "Red Riding Hood and Black Tiger." I stood up, heading over to the mat. My competitor was a large, burly man head-to-toe in a black cat suit, dark grey stripes all over his suit. He had the pose of an attacker, and a slight sense of malice on him. He seems to be a villain, but if I can tell based off his attack style it'd be much more helpful.

Should I use my lightning? Looking him up and down, I could tell I could easily defeat him if I was fast enough. The referee started us and I rushed forward as he ran towards me. Ducking under him, I rolled to the side before quickly pushing him off the mat, before jumping on top of him and straddling my legs around his neck.

"Tap out," I demand as he quickly taps out and I release my legs, causing him to inhale deeply. Standing up, I offer him a hand which he pushes away.

"Hero," he spits out, and I arch a brow. "You're a villain."

"You've gotten that right. I'm leaving," he yells, before stomping away like a child. Ignoring him, I head back to the bleachers, feeling everyone's eyes bore into my back.

If every fight was going to be like Black Tiger, it'd be extremely boring. I usually beat villains under half a minute if I use a fraction of my strength, too.

Chimera and Yoona fight, with Chimera winning after kicking Yoona in the crotch, which was a dirty move. Criminals usually play dirty, so when Yoona groaned out a "villain" and his response was a laugh, it was no surprise he was a villain. I suppose I'll fight him in the next round, which I'm not excited for.

We soon started the next round of fights, with Octopus deflecting Cherry Chic's acid juices with her telekinetic powers, hovering it around her head from all sides and counted down from 10. Cherry Chic surrendered at 6, and called Octopus a villain while Octopus called Cherry Chic a villain.

Blueberry and Moon Man were up next, and Blueberry easily defeated Fruit Dude, calling him a villain. Moon Man called Blueberry a hero, and soon after Dino Dan and Blue Polo fought.

Blue Polo quickly deflected each attack before grabbing Dino Dan by the claws in a bunch, before throwing Dino Dan over his shoulder, pulling all the claws from Dino Dan's fingers as Dino Dan flew into the wall, collapsing in a heap, blood spurting from his finger tips. Dino Dan muttered 'villain' before falling unconscious, and Blue Polo put a hand to his mouth.

"I never knew I was so strong," Blue Polo's face began to tint a pale green, seeming to choke back at the site of blood, "but he's a villain if he killed someone so easily before. I'm glad I was able to take his claws in case he'd ever escape prison."

Arching a brow, I twiddled with my braid as I watched Blue Polo titter over to a trash can, before quickly barfing. I don't know if it's just me thinking this, but if he gets so freaked out by the sight of blood why was he not sick when Matilda's heart was torn out? And how did he just realize this strength, too?

People on the bleachers murmured theories as Chimera and I were called out. I quickly pushed Chimera out of the ring, finalizing the win for me.

"We have our winners, congratulations Octopus, Blueberry, Blue Polo and Red Riding Hood." The greasy business man declares, as we all applauded. I sigh in relief, I would've been so nervous if I had to fight the other 3. They all seemed so strong!

The business man escorted us to a side room just as a flank of guards entered the room, grabbing some people and handcuffing them or somehow restricting their movements. I noticed they had taken Chimera, Dino Dan, Black Tiger, Boat Boy, Cherry Chic, Yoona and Toy Boy. Mentally counting the people, my jaw dropped before I snapped it closed.

 _That was only seven people._

I was the last one to enter the side room, so I was seemingly the only one who had noticed.

"Everyone, please sit," the greasy business man says, extending his arm to the circular table with 12 chairs. "This is actually the back of a truck you are in, we are going to go to the 2 other upper levels who are 5 minutes behind us. We will collect them before going onto the final round."

Awkwardly sitting down, I buckle the seat, looking at everyone else. Blue Polo looked excited, Octopus looked bored and Blueberry looked extremely proud. But overall, none of them looked like they wanted to be talking.

I suddenly felt a movement under me as the truck slowly began to climb upward before sharply turning, and we all clutched onto the table as it pulled to an abrupt stop as the back door slid open, connecting to the back of a wall. Turning the chair around, I watched as the door opened and in walked a large, clunky robot which stood in the corner of the truck, and a set of male, lanky triplets with identical green eyes and bright pink hair. The only difference between them was their eyelash colors were all different; one was pink, another green, the final black.

The triplets all sat clustered together, so I had two seats on one side available and 1 on the other. Two free spots were between Octopus and Blue Polo.

The truck door closed as we drove up, and collected the next participants. One was an old man with a bushy white mustache, another with a snakeskin suit and an extremely high pair of cheekbones that reeked of expensive gross perfume, a man with a beanie and large headphones, and the last one wearing a tight black suit, two katanas stapped to their back and their long blonde hair in two pigtails.

Out of all of them, Octopus, the blonde-haired girl and I were the only girls. And both seem very unfriendly. The headphone guy sat on my left while the old man on my right, with the gross-perfume guy sat on the left of headphone guy. We were all quiet as the truck began moving, until we finally reached our destination: a huge field.

We all escorted ourselves off the truck, and soon 5 trucks filled with workers began to file out, prepping viewing stations.

"Alright! I am you're referee today, Kim-chi!" A girl squeals, twirling her long brown hair that was straightened down to her butt. She was wearing a navy pantsuit with a white undershirt. "Based off your results today, we have made a new bracket!"

"Um, I thought we were done? Shouldn't we all be S-Rank now?" The blonde asks, as Kim-chi shook her head.

"Some of you will be leaving in the same rank as before! We estimate that less than half of you will become S-Rank, maybe some of you will be lined up to be S-Rank later. Any who, here is our bracket!"

She held up a large whiteboard, displaying our alliance names as previously. But this bracket was weird.

"Excuse me?" The old man asked, "Why do some people have more brackets than others?"

Looking at it, I began to notice the same thing.

"Well, based off your performance and how you did it, the people who had higher performance levels and points don't have to compete as much as the others who didn't have as high of scores," she explains, "so if you barely tried or struggled with low performances, you have to perform more and better to advance to the final rounds."

"This is unfair!" The perfume-guy declares, "I have the most chances next to headphones!"

"I'm fine with that," headphones declares, as I look for my name. I was somewhere in the middle, which I suppose is a good thing? I noticed that Octopus was near the end, next to Blueberry and some guy named 'Kaboom.'

The first to compete was perfume guy (Reptile) and headphone (Electronico.). They both seemed to fight to the beat of their own drum until Reptile jabbed his finger tips into Electronico's headphones, instantly breaking them. Electronico seemed to lose focus, then he lost the battle quickly.

Next was the large clunky robot versus the girl, and she tried to set it on fire with some fire power but ended up losing the battle quickly. The robot's name was Metal Man, but I easily forgot the girl's. I was to fight Reptile, and easily won when I kicked him in the gut and crushed 5 ribs to smithereens. He was rushed off to a hospital, but he was cursing my name all the while. I thought he was supposed to be stronger if he made it to these rounds, but I suppose I'm wrong.

Metal Man fought the black-lashed twin, quickly defeating them until I was up to fight the robot. Looking at the 8 foot robot I gulped nervously. Would I seriously be able to defeat a robot?

Come on, Gina, think positively. You've beaten literal hellspawn, you can do this.

"Fight!" Kim-Chi declares as the robot charges forward, lifting a fist. My face furrowed as I lifted my own, punching the robot's fist with a bit of power behind it, looking like an epic fist-bump...until the robot's metal shattered into a million pieces alongside its exo-skeleton, leaving behind a metal powder.

The crowd gasped as Kim-Chi cleared her throat. "Red Riding Hood is our winner of this round!"

The next was Green Lashes vs Pink lashes, and they both had the exact same moves and knocked each other out. The person in the next round set to battle that winner named Blue Polo went to semi-finals.

Soon, it was for me and Blue Polo to fight for the final position. Kaboom, Blueberry and Octopus had ranked high so they barely had to fight, so either one of us could win.

"Best of luck to you, Blue Polo." I greet, bowing shortly to them, which they return. "You know, once I get in the top four I can't wait to have all my crimes cleared," he murmurs as my eyes widen.

"W-what?"

"I've committed mass genocide in 10 out of 27 cities. I have a kill list of 3500, but most are claimed as 'spirited away,'" he cackles, "my goal is to kill 350 in each city. I was told if I get in the top 4 I was allowed to kill prisoners set free into the cities, like a game of chase without consequences. Of course, this'll be fun, too."

He looks up at me, brown eyes raving mad. His black hair was matted to his head, and his stance was one of a predator. His glasses had been long thrown off, but now I could see how his eyes were observing me like a lion to its prey.

He was out to kill.

"I hope you enjoy dying."

"Start!"

He rushes towards me like a starving man at a buffet, and I realized I'd have to get serious. Side stepping him, I lift my foot up, kicking him into the air. He spins in the air, raising a fist at me as he comes crashing back down to Earth, punching at me wildly. His feet crash onto the ground cracking up dirt around us. I furrow my brows, creating a large electric-forcefield bubble so no one could get injured around us.

His eyes glow a dark black, swarming his entire eye as chunks of dirt come flying at me. Pushing them away, he begins to create more chunks of dirt, getting larger and larger. Jumping, I push myself from dirt piece to piece, before jumping at him, extending my hand outward as a ball of electricity jets towards him and he deflects it quickly with a piece of dirt.

"You seem like you'll be interesting to kill, I haven't had this excitement for the longest time!" He cackles, and with the snap of his fingers a dirt wall forms around me, a large chunk of dirt over my head.

He plans to suffocate me!

"What the hell are you?!" I screech, hair floating around me as my body charges up on electricity building it up for a large attack.

He laughs, "You know, I usually don't possess human bodies."

My eyes grew wide as I sense the chunk of dirt about to drop as I roll out of the way just in time. "What are you talking about?" I grunt out, and he grins wildly.

"Ares was talking about the latest defender of humans."

"Latest?"

"You thought you were the only one?" It tilts its head, grinning a lopsided sneer at me, "How vain. There was another before you, gifted with the same gift you have. It died, of course, which is why you're here."

"W-what?" I stutter. Dean never told me this!

"Committed suicide, it knew they'd be stuck on Earth forever playing this forsaken game. I heard they were a great warrior, but you'll do. After all, they've had thousands of years of training while you've had half a decade," it sneers, jabbing an elbow to my nose. I tilt my head back, throwing a punch at their cheek.

"Why are you possessing a body?" I spit out, dodging an attack, jumping back quickly.

"Ares said to scope out the warrior, so I'm doing so. Hades didn't care, he only cares about winning in the end. You do realize you can't kill me through your human means, use that delicious power on me!" It laughs, and my brows furrow.

"I do things my way, Polo."

"It's Halphas, _mortal._ " It's voice became darker and more demonic as the skin grew paler, the eyes redder and the hair longer and as black as night. The cheekbones became prominent as the pure-dark red eyes set deep inside the demon's face looked at me, the frame growing lankier and taller by the second.

"Your soul will be especially interesting to eat, especially since its practically going to last forever."

"Not going to happen, buddy." I glare at them, reaching in my pocket and withdrawing the hilt, causing the sword to come out sparking bright white and blue electricity.

"Wait," I say, standing up straight as the sword metal retracts, and I pocket the hilt. "I don't need to use a sword to kill you."

"What?" The demon cocks its head, looking at me confused.

"All I need to do is to _flip the switch."_

* * *

 ** _1 year ago_**

 _"Listen, these skills I have taught you should be implemented deep in your brain by now," Heracles lectures, "but you should pull your punches to the extreme, or else you will blow everything to smithereens."_

 _"But what if I face a tough foe?" I ask, and Heracles smirks through his thick beard._

 _"Mentally flip the restraining switch off, then."_

* * *

My pigtails rose around my as the air crackled with electricity, causing the dirt to fall back to the ground. Jumping forward, the electricity carried me through the air as white electricity swarmed my hands. Faster than the blink of an eye, my hands grasped around the demon's head, short-fusing its entire body as I snap its neck, pulling off the head in the process, causing black blood to squirt everywhere, including my clothes. Landing back on my feet, I look at the head, turning my restraining switch back on.

"Oh! I forgot this was a competition!" I muse, looking around me to see the electric barrier still crackling. With the flourish of my hand it falls, and I see the confused faces of everyone.

"What...what happened? We couldn't see what was happening inside the bubble, the barrier was too thick," Kim-Chi mutters, as I hold up the demon's head by the long hair.

"I killed the villain! He probably created a barrier or something while we were fighting." I grin, tossing the head quickly. I really don't feel like letting others know about my Trump card: electricity.

"Oh, uh, I suppose that Red Riding Hood has won this round?" Kim-Chi states, as the field falls silent. I was quickly escorted into the medical tent, as they searched for any bruises or cuts to heal, but there was nothing to find. I quickly washed off, looking in the mirror at my face and I gasped in shock.

About an inch or so of my braids' tips had turned paper white, fading from a light pink that went to a bright red that went to my dark red color. Frowning to myself, I take out a pocket knife, quickly hacking away 5 inches of my braided hair so the braids fell at my shoulder. I looped the rubber bands around my hair, and I exited the medical tent only to be ushered over to Kaboom, Blueberry and Octopus.

"You four are the top competitors and will be placed in class S, effective immediately. We can determine which ranks you'd become tomorrow alongside the other 4 who have made it into S-class members-" Kim-Chi smiles as Octopus holds up a hand.

"Hold up, we aren't the only ones?"

"Well, no. Each group today was comprised of 16, which makes 48 people. If you double that, technically 96 people had the chance to be S-class, though half were prisoners and others heroes. There was a strange case, though, where a prisoner wanted to become a hero if they made it into the top 4, which did happen..."

"Will more people be added in later?" I ask as Kim-Chi nods. "Yep! But not for a while, for now we'll just have the Top 8 people ranked for now. Please meet at the Hero Association tomorrow at the same time, we will drive you to your hotel room for the night."

"Hotel?" Kaboom asks as Kim-Chi nods.

"Yes, since all of you lives in a different city than A-City."

I wince slightly at the mention of the city. Though I had been here all day, I was distracted by this tournament; it still brought up strong memories of when I was a student. But based off Kim-Chi's comment, I wonder how many heroes I have living in Z-City with me.

We piled into a sleek black limo, and Kim-Chi sat up front with the window rolled up. I suppose she expected us to talk among ourselves...

"I think we should all get to know each other, since we're most likely going to be in the same division. So, uh, my name is Gina," I greet, breaking the awkward silence. They all turn their eyes to me, and the old man's mustache twitches lightly.

"Bang," the old man gravelly states, "which isn't too far from 'Kaboom,' I suppose."

Looking towards Octopus, she _hmphs_ lightly, crossing her arms. "My hero name is Tornado of Terror, but my regular name is Tatsumaki."

Nodding at her, I look towards the blue haired man. "And you?" I ask, looking at the blue haired bishie.

"Amai Mask," he glowers at me, gold eyes burning with molten rage. Why is he mad?

"So, _Gina,_ what's your hero name?" Amai Mask presses, leaning forward in interest.

"Oh, I don't have one yet." I respond, "I usually leave the scene before news reporters show up as to not make a big deal of things."

"Does that mean you're not even a hero?" He questions, and I shake my head.

"No, I'm a hero."

"You could be lying, after all a villain would want to know who we are before they kill us,. And a hero wouldn't messily chop off a head like you did previously," he spits out, creating a thick tension in the car that a steak knife couldn't even cut through.

I think he just wants to anger me, I already know that he, Tatsumaki and Bang are all heroes.

"I could be lying, but I'm not." I shrug, "If you think that I'm lying, then try to stop me, Amy Mask."

" _Amai,"_ he seethes, and I shrug. "Potato poh-tah-to. It shouldn't matter to you what I call you if you think I'm a villain."

He glared at me once more, and opened his mouth to say something when the car pulled to a stop. I hopped out of the limo, gazing in awe at the large hotel in front of us.

"We've put basic clothing and necessities in your room, feel free to leave the hotel whenever. You all shall be sharing a room, The limo is heading for the headquarters at 9 am, so make sure to be here at that time." Kim-Chi notes, before getting back into the limo as a bellhop approaches us, escorting us to our rooms.

Upon entering my room, I gasp lightly at the sheer size of it as the bouncer passes me and everyone else a key card. It was larger than my apartment back home, and each of the 5 rooms was a master bedroom."

"So, should girls take one side and boys take another?" I ask, with the only response being a nod from Bang. Looking at Tatsumaki, she had already floated on over to the left side, and I shuffled onto her side to claim the spare room. Entering it, I was immediately amazed by the sheer largeness of it. It had an alcohol cabinet, which I can legally drink from now since I'm 20, a large spare bathroom, and a huge king sized bed.

Grinning widely to myself I sprint to the bathroom, looking upon a large shower, huge jacuzzi and a double sink. I have an idea...

Walking out of my room, I walk over to Tatsumaki's and knock on it. She cracks it open a hair, peering through it with her large green eyes.

"What."

"My room has a jacuzzi tub, and I was wondering if you'd like to come over and we can hang out in it? I don't have many girlfriends, so it'd be nice to get to know one," I ramble, and she squints at me.

"No."

"Why not? I don't think we have much to do, now," I whine, and she sighs.

"Because I don't hang out with children. I am not a babysitter." The door went to close again but I slipped my foot through it.

I know I appeared youthful, but for the love of the gods I am not a child

"Child? I know I look young but I'm probably older than you!" I hissed, and she opened the door.

"Are you calling _me_ a child, now?" The girl roared, looking clearly irked. She was about my height, maybe a bit shorter. I was 5'1", so she was possibly 4'10" or 4'11".

"Well, how old are you?" I ask, and she crosses her arms. "26."

"20," I reply, "there's not too much of a difference there, though."

"Hmmph, you're only a year younger than my little sister. In my eyes, you're barely an adult," she points out, and I sigh.

"Alright, I suppose you don't want to go into the jacuzzi, then. It was nice talking-"

"We were given a complimentary stay at a hotel, it'd be a shame if we didn't use the facilities here," she yawns, "we have also been given clothing in our closets, if you hadn't noticed. I wouldn't mind going to the bar downstairs in an hour or so after a shower."

Her sharp green eyes blinked up at me, "I don't know about you, but those are my plans, Gina."

I slowly grin at her, giving her a nod. "Who knew that my plans would be similar. Since it seems both of us are going at that time, would it suit both of our interests to go at the same time together?"

She gives a low sigh and a shrug, "I don't see why not. Shall we meet at the front door at 7?"

"Alright, see you then." With that, I backed away from the door as she slammed it closed, but not before I could see the faintest of smiles drifting on her lips. Escstatic, I hop over to my room and throw off my clothes, getting into the shower. It felt so nice to wipe off all the grime, dirt and sweat from my body.

After 10 or so minutes I hopped out, blow drying and straightening my hair. The new cut was even, and it fell at my armpits now. Wrapping the towel around myself, I walked over to my closet, looking at the outfits.

There were 3 plain outfits in there, which I suppose is extremely generous of the Hero Association. One was a pair of black running shorts and a white tank, which I will most likely wear tomorrow. The second was a plain black dress that fell just above my knee. The third was a business formal, with a black blazer and pencil skirt with a white button down. In the drawers was a black lacy bralette and a plain white sports bra, alongside plain black panties. Donning the sports bra and some black panties, I slipped the plain black dress over me. Then, I took the plain black heels and put them on.

Finding a tube of mascara I quickly swipe some on, before looking at the clock to see it read '6:58.' Quickly putting my flip phone in the pocket of the dress, I head out the door and closed it behind me, striding towards the front door to see Tatsumaki already there. Her green hair was pulled into a tight bun, some curly tendrils falling tucked behind her ear. Giving her a grin, we head down to the bar.

We made small talk as it evolved into our personal history as we got drunker and drunker.

"And then I was all 'why not another apple?' And he goes 'because you bought all 200 candy apples!' So I went 'um, like, can't you make more?' And he goes 'I used all my apples!'" Tatsumaki rants, taking a sip of her Pincer vodka. Her face was flushed red, and her speech began to slur. "So, I went home with all 200 apples, and I slowly ate them one by one to preserve them."

"How long," I ask, hiccuping in a pause, "did it take for you to eat them all?"

"Like...a whole week!" She throws her hands up, emphasizing how long it took. "Hey, bartender, more...more vodka!" She demands, picking up her glass.

"Me too!" I cheer, holding up my glass. The bartender arches a brow, "I've poured out my whole bottle for both of ya. It's also 89% alcohol, I can't legally give you more."

"We're just trynna have a good time," I slur in my natural dialect, doing 'gimme' hand signs, "just let us."

"You're speakin' gibberish now, I can't legally do it, Miss. Please return to your rooms. Should I call for a bellhop to escort you?"

"F-first you thought we were children, and now you want us to have a babysitter?" Tatsumaki hiccups, throwing her arm around my shoulder drunkingly, pulling me closer as she points an accusing finger at the bartender. "We don't need you! Let's go, Gina."

We turn from the bar, teetering on our heels as we clutch onto each other, giggling as we went to the elevator. It quickly climbed up to our floor as we went to the door.

"You have the key, right?" I ask, giggling slightly as Tatsumaki checks her purse, before swearing.

"I left it at the bar, but I don't wanna go back there. The bar *hic* bartender is a meanie."

"Oh, okay," I nod, before banging my fist on the door. "Open up, we're locked out!"

"It's, like, only 11 pm, they should be awake," Tatsumaki adds, and my brows furrow.'

"Open up!" I groan, accidentally swinging my fist too hard and breaking my fist through the wood. I sobered up for a quick second, as Tatsumaki and I exchanged glances before bursting into giggles.

"That's so cool!" She laughs as I put my hand through the hole, grabbing the handle and unlocking it from the inside as we both enter.

"They should prob fix the whole," I mutter as a wavy green haze surrounds the broken wood chips, as they float back over to the door and fill the gap.

"Boom! Fixed! Now let's go to your room and used the hot tub! We've got alcohol!" She cheers, as Bang looks up from the couch he was sitting on.

"Oh, that was you. Try not to die."

"Will do!" I slur as we romp on over to my room, quickly shedding our dresses and shoes as we hopped into the hot tub each with a bottle of red wine.

The next thing I knew I woke up next to Tatsumaki on my bed, us both looking at each other with wide eyes at 7 am.

"Did we...?" I trail off as she shakes her head. "No, you fell asleep in the tub so I put you on the bed, then I passed out."

Sitting up, I felt a large throb in my forehead and I groaned. "Damn, I haven't been this hungover in a while. We should be getting ready to leave for HQ in an hour."

"I'm going to shower," she grumbles, trudging to the room across the hall and slamming the door. Standing up, I trudge over to the toilet bowl and unleash the previous night's contents into it, wiping away whatever might've been left on my face with the back of my hand. Quickly, I jump into the cold shower, instantly refreshing me...

Until I stepped out of the shower and saw my puffy face. Great.

Grabbing a glass, I filled it with cold tap water and downed it quickly as I changed into the white tee and black shorts, putting on socks and running shorts, then put my hair in a damp bun. Heading out the door at 7:30, I went to the kitchen and made a pot of coffee, and began scrambling some eggs. I hear footsteps from behind me, and I lift up a limp hand in greeting.

"Hey, I'm making a pot of coffee and some eggs, so take whatever." I offer, turning to see Amai. He looks me up and down, lip twitching in disgust.

"How unsightly," he spits out, "you're supposedly a hero, not a drunkard."

"Sorry if I made too much noise entering the house, now, do you want coffee or not?" I ask, gesturing to the pot. He frowns, but begrudgingly takes some, pouring the liquid energy into a mug.

"Thanks," he mutters, more like spits out as he takes a sip of his coffee. Smiling softly, I dump the eggs onto a platter, reaching into the fridge for hot sauce and setting it on the counter alongside some cheese.

He arches a brow as I cut the scrambled egg portion in half, scraping it onto my plate. I shred the cheese onto the egg, before quickly pouring Cholula hot sauce over the eggs.

"What on Earth are you doing?" He spits out as I grab a fork, tossing it to him, which he catches between two fingers. Picking one up for me, I grin back at him.

"You've never had hot sauce on eggs? Or cheese?"

"No, it sounds disgusting. Besides, I usually just use pepper," he informs, gold eyes looking at me in disgust, "truffle salt if it is available." He begins grinding the pepper above his eggs, causing me to laugh.

"Do you wanna try some of my eggs?" I ask, which he replies with abruptly shaking his head. "I don't wish to purge myself later."

I shrug, sitting across from him at the counter. "Suit yourself." I quickly dig into the eggs, feeling his gold eyes watching my every move.

This makes me feel like I'm a damn zoo specimen!

"You're not from around here, are you?" He asks, and I lift my head, quickly swallowing the eggs. "I went to college in A-City for a bit, until I couldn't pay off my loans, so I moved to Z-City-"

"You have the faintest of accents, it sounds like you're trying to muffle it, though." He informs, and I nod. "Well, I lived in Hawai'i up until almost 3 years ago when I came here for school. My mom is from here while my dad is from Hawai'i."

"Is this why you eat the strange food combinations?" He asks, looking at my hot-sauce-cheese eggs strangely. I laugh slightly, "I suppose so, or maybe it's because my brothers used to do it all the time."

"I see..." We fell into silence again, until I finished my eggs, then I washed my dishes and put them away. Cracking open a couple more eggs, I turn on the stove once more.

"Why are you making more eggs?" He asks, and I look back at him as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Well, eggs for Tatsumaki and Bang, obviously."

He paused a moment, before nodding. "Alright."

Turning from him, I continued making eggs until Bang came into the kitchen. I gave him some scrambled eggs which he replied to with a "thank you," as he headed over to the coffee pot.

When Tatsumaki came I gave her some eggs which she grumbled out a reply of "thanks" as she headed over to the coffee pot, drinking hers black. At 8:45 we headed down to the lobby, before getting back in the limo on the way to HQ.

* * *

"Congratulations to all of you for making it this far, it is assured that you will all be ranked within S-class," Kim-Chi grins, causing the rest of the workers to applaud us. Looking around, I noticed there were 4 new people. The first was an extremely pale man with red eyes and short black hair, the second was a small child in a blue polo licking a pink lollipop, the third was a scruffy looking man with jet black hair pulled into a ponytail and a katana strapped on his back, with the last being a large, muscular black man.

"Today, you will fight one another based off the scores you received while fighting yesterday. After all is said and done, we will analyze which positions you have, and will release ranks within the hour. So, let's start off with 'Child Emperor' and 'Kamikaze.'

The scruffy man and the boy stood up, heading to the large gym in the room next to us. We all crowded around the glass window, eager to see what was to happen.

"Why are we watching from here?" Bang asks, glancing towards Kim-Chi.

"We expected these fights to possibly have a lot of flying objects, so this is for safety issues and observations. We decided to have it here instead of in a field due to...complications."

Ah, I see I brought problems with the demon fight yesterday. Oh well, at least I didn't die.

The boy had spindly mechanical spider legs emerge from his backpack, making the child rise above the man. He smirked, withdrawing a katana, and the fight began. The boy's spider legs narrowly avoided each slice at rapid speed until he switched to offense, legs slicing at the man in the style of sword play. I suppose the boy analyzed the katana's fighting style by going on defense until he felt ready to fight, how smart.

The fight continued until the young boy surrendered after stepping back, claiming he had collected all the data he needed from the man. Both were told to rest for the next fight, causing me to arch a brow. So, these weren't going to be tournament-style, but we'd be fighting others until our data would be collected. I suppose that means I'd be fighting all 7?

"Next is Bang and Amai Mask." The two fought, with the surprising victor being Amai, but barely. It seemed like both were holding back, afraid of wasting too much energy or killing each other?

"Superalloy Darkshine and...Gina Johnson," Kim-Chi reads off, as the dark man stands up from his spot, going down the staircase that leads to the gym. It sounded like Kim-Chi was surprised I didn't have a hero name compared to everyone else, but oh well. Standing from my spot, I hop down the stairs two at a time, entering the large gym and standing across from Darkshine. Looking around the gym, I noticed there was another window, filled with rows of seats and businessmen sitting in it. Those may be sponsors or scientists, who knows?

"Uh, hi, let's have a good match," I greet, turning to Darkshine and putting a hand forward, err, upward.

"Alright." He gives a thick smile at me, large hand encompassing mine, "Good luck, you'll need it. You should know my muscles are impossible to penetrate!"

Ugh, so the muscular-macho-man is vain, too. Great.

"Alright," Kim-Chi's voice crackles over the speaker, "start whenever."

A dark blur of punches fell upon me as I blocked each one, looking for a weakness or flaw in his punches, but there were none. It was getting kind of boring blocking punches like this, so I suppose I'll have to create a flaw myself.

Raising an open hand to the spot he'd next punch, my small hand grips around his large, meaty right hand. As he raises his other hand to strike me, I use my left hand to grab onto his right hand so both hands were holding his. Lifting my right leg up I quickly snap up a front kick with a little force, kicking back his hand, and bend backwards. Throwing my hands above my head, I throw Darkshine over my head and into the gym wall, instantly knocking him through the wall and into the next room over (a conference room, to be exact.).

"Sorry, Alloy! I used a bit too much force!" I shout out at him as he lifts up his bald, shiny head, giving me a woozy grin.

"Uh, I think I may have concussed him, can someone get a medic?" I call out, sparing a glance up at the viewing window as I jog on over to Darkshine, offering him a hand.

"Here, I'll help you stand up." I smile at him as he grabs my hand, a smirk coming onto his face as he throws me forward into the other wall. Frowning, I land on my feet on the other wall.

"Rude," I groan, pushing off at him, cracking the wall behind me. I launch myself at him, spinning in air so my legs wrap around his stomach when I land on his body. Pivoting myself with the last of the momentum I had, I leaned backwards, putting my hands above my head as I did somewhat of a handstand with my legs still wrapped around Alloy's body. Pushing myself off the floor, I go 5 meters in the air before spinning around so I'd land on Alloy. He struggles between my legs and I give him a smirk as we plummet down to the ground. Jumping off him a meter above the ground, I kick him last-second to neutralize the impact as he rolls into another wall, unconscious.

Crossing my arms, I look back up at the window. "I suppose we'll need a medic now."

* * *

The next round passed by quickly, with Tatsumaki and 'Zombieman' fought, which ended quickly with Tatsumaki dangling Zombieman's weapons around him and rapid firing them. Turns out that Zombieman can't die, which is probably the reason for his name. Kim-Chi called off the match as a 'tie' because whenever Zombieman tried to hit Tatsumaki she'd just fly out of range. Darkshine had been exempted from the next few rounds, and was automatically placed as the lowest S-class member for the time being.

I went up to fight Child Emperor next, who seemed friendly enough.

"Start whenever!" Kim-Chi announces, as legs immediately spring from Emperor's backpack, propelling Child Emperor towards me as he moved his own legs at high speed, aiming for my head. Rolling to the side, I grab one of the metallic legs and crush it between my fist, sending electrical waves up through the metal and short-circuiting it. The legs immediately crumble, causing Child Emperor to fall. Jumping at him, I tear him from his backpack in a tight hug and roll away from the metallic contraption mess.

"You good, little dude?" I ask, setting him away from me. "Yeah, thanks." He nods, "Shall we stop?"

"Sure." Then we turned and headed up the stairs, away from his twitching backpack. Business men quickly went out to the backpack, picking it up and carting it off to a side room for later.

"Sorry I busted it," I apologize, "I was only going to push over the limb, I never meant to crush it."

"It was merely a prototype, no worries."

The others fought again, and before I knew it I was up against Kamikaze.

"Are you going to use a sword to fight me?" I ask, and he nods. "It's a katana, but yes."

"Do you have another one with you I could use for a fair fight? I mean, I don't want to brazenly swing my fists around," I reply, and a grin comes onto his face.

"Let me get it, really quick." He turns on his heel and heads back up the stairs, causing me to pause in my steps. A minute later he comes back, a katana in its sheath.

"Here," he passes it to me and I take it gingerly in my hands, examining the sheath. "Nice."

We head down to the gym, and I stand across from him, holding my hand out. "Let's have a fair fight, Kamikaze."

He smacks my hand aside, and I arch a brow. "I only acknowledge the strong, young girl."

"That is very brash and arrogant of you," I point out, withdrawing my hand as a glare comes into my eyes. I know I'm short, but 'young girl' sounds creepy!

"Start!" Kim-Chi announces, and I quickly withdraw the katana from its sheath, remembering my training with Heracles. We parried at high speeds until he swiped at my feet, causing me to jump up a few feet, raising a foot and pushing it forward at the katana's tip. His eyes widen as my heel hits the tip of the sword, shattering the metal of the sword, causing bits and pieces to fly everywhere. I could tell he was holding back a bit, but I was trying harder than normal. I mean, I usually don't use swords or katanas to fight at all. In his shocked state, I abruptly raise an elbow and slam it into his chest, thrusting him into the ground. Landing on my feet, I swish the katana by his throat, arching a brow.

"Surrender."

He raises two hands weakly, dropping the hilt of his shattered katana. Stepping away from him, I pick up the sheath and sheath the katana, tossing it to Kamikaze who quickly catches it.

"I apologize for breaking your katana, but I am not to offer you my hand to help you up. After all, _I only acknowledge the strong,"_ I mimic, " _old man."_

That was the final nail in the coffin as he drops the katana, and I turn my head from him, making my way up the staircase.

I fought next against Zombie Man, and after I punched him and caused his arm to fall off I felt bad and almost surrendered until it started regrowing.

"Um, does this happen a lot?" I ask as he clenches and reclenches his new hand.

"Not too much," he shrugs.

"I'm really sorry about it, sometimes I'm not the best at pulling my punches," I respond, nervously laughing.

"It's fine, it's just an arm," he waves off, and we continue fighting for a couple more minutes until Kim-Chi calls it a tie, announcing the fight won't go on if we continue at that rate. I mean, the only way to truly defeat him would to be to turn him into mincemeat, but I don't think anyone wants to.

Soon, for my next match I was against Bang. He used some karate techniques and was about to pin me, until I paused a moment. If he moved swift like a river but was to hurt them like a rock, I was to do the exact opposite.

So, I pushed past him, and sat down on the floor, crossing my legs and patient. Bang looks at me, evidently confused.

Rocks have the patience of decades and centuries, immobile until an outside force interacts with it. So, that's what I'm going to do.

Bang's mustache twitched for a slight second, before he ran towards me, striking at every possible place. Smirking, I remained where I stood, merely deflecting it. Previously I was moving my whole body to deflect his attacks, but now if I moved only ever so slightly I wouldn't be cornered again. I move like water to deflect the attacks, only slightly but ever-so fluid.

Bang's brow creases as his attack speed heightens, going faster and faster until a flurry of punches are upon me. But yet, I remain calm, dodging each one until I find a weakness: his right armpit. Purposefully leaning a little more to my right after the next dodge, he aims a right fist at my face as I lift up my left leg, sending a kick at his armpit.

The moment my foot touches his pit he goes flying into the wall, stuck in the rubble. Breathing slightly heavy, I roll my neck with a satisfying crack, before running over to him and helping him up from the rubble.

"Good fight," I breathe heavy, giving a short bow, "I haven't done one like that for a while, now."

He breathed heavily, too, bowing back at me. "I enjoyed it also."

Next was Tatsumaki: the girl I was most scared to fight. Tatsumaki had a serious look on her face as we stared each other down.

"Just because we had a few drinks doesn't mean I'm going to go easy on you," she informs, and I smile. "I wouldn't want you to, Tatsumaki."

"Start!" Kim-Chi announces, and Tatsumaki's curls float up and above her head.

"I'm going to end this quickly," she informs, "but you already know I'm a psychic, and even non-psychics have auras around their bodies, but they are untrained and easy to manipulate. If I just take yours and swirl-"

She points at me, swirling her finger around. For a moment, I felt nothing, until it felt like I was being thrown on one of those carnival boat rides set on high speed, which also goes upside down. My muscles twitched, I felt pops of electricity in my ear, causing my eyebrows to twitch.

The ground beneath me began to crack under pressure and Tatsumaki's eyebrows creased as she swirled my aura harder. Taking a step forward, I imagine my aura spinning the opposite direction, counteracting Tatsumaki's moves. Suddenly, the crackling stopped, and I grinned at Tatsumaki.

Frowning, she put her middle finger and thumb together and flicked at me, causing a rush of air to push me back into the cement wall. Groaning to myself, I peel myself off, looking back at her.

"Attack me, or this will get boring," she spits, "I know you have a hellfire within you."

"You're right about that," I reply, "but I've always been holding back."

Running towards her, electricity crackles in the air around me as I jump at her, bouncing off an invisible barrier she created.

"That's unfair," I whine, "I don't make a barrier to bubble myself in."

"Then let's continue this outside, where we have free grounds to fight." We both turn to the large window and see Kim-Chi nod. Turning back to Tatsumaki, I noticed she floats down and we head up the staircase and elevator up to free ground. We were oddly silent, eager to get back to scrapping each other up.

"I don't wish to destroy the town, shall we head to the field we were in previously?" I ask once we get back outside. She nods, a green aura surrounding her as she floats off towards it. Turning my head back around, I notice that the businessmen and the other heroes were going to follow us.

"I recommend staying back for this one, we'll be honest about the results." I shout, before applying some electrical force underneath my feet, before pushing off the ground and propelling myself through the air, the electrical currency carrying me through air as it crackled around me.

Landing in the torn up field we were in previously, I rolled my neck, looking at Tatsumaki. "I won't be holding back," I warn as she scoffs. "There's nothing for you to hold back."

"I could end this right now," I reply, brow twitching, "I'm just going to give you a chance."

"What is a kid going to do to me?" She laughs, as I switch my mental switch off. My hands twitch, quickly throwing a ball of electricity at her. Before she can defend herself, she gets struck by it and falls to the ground, unconscious.

"I suppose that summarizes it," I grumble, making my way over to her and picking her up bridal style. I quickly jump back over to HQ, setting her on a couch.

"I won," I inform, catching the gazes of the people's eyes behind me as they murmur in shock, all had been defeated by Tatsumaki. "But, she puts up a good fight."

We quickly moved into the last round, and I was pitted against Amai Sweet Mask.

"You are a villain," he spits out, "I've known this the entire time."

"Well, I really don't care about good and evil, I just do what's ethically correct in my opinion," I converse, waving him off.

"Start!" Kim-Chi announces, and I immediately rush forward, throwing a right punch into Amai's cheek. He smirks, catching me mid air and forcing me down to the ground head-first. Grimacing, I put my hands down below me, wrapping my legs around Amai's neck as I push off the ground with my hands, throwing Amai into the ground. He chuckles, grabbing me by the arms as he rolls to a standing position, drop kicking me in the gut as I fly a few feet away from him. Groaning slightly, I deflect each punch he quickly sends at me before throwing a large punch at him, making him skid back a few feet. Amai sits back up, and we both run at each other, exchanging kicks and punches as I swiftly chop him in the gut. He coughs up some life essence, a droplet flecking onto my face as I swiftly uppercut him, making him fall back into the wall.

He quickly stood back up, elbowing me in the face as I kicked him, and we both fell back. Pulling my punches wasn't easy, especially since Amai has been irksome. Running forward and grabbing him by the leg, I toss him over into the ground, before lifting him up and thrashing him down on the opposite side (Hulk move). His eye twitched as I let go, throwing him into the wall which he landed on, before pushing off it at me at full force.

Before I knew it, both of his eyes were cat-slitted and dark red, veins twitching on his face. "I cannot allow you to become S-class," he darkly says, and the next thing I knew he was over me, and with the swipe of his fingers I felt a pulse come from my neck, blood sputtering from it.

The world seemed to pulse around me as I gasped for air, a pounding sound in my head. Was that...my heartbeat? My own blood flecked unto his face, snapping his blood red eyes back to gold and suppressed the bulging veins on his face. I was dully aware of falling on the floor, looking up at the white ceiling. My back pulsed, as I felt all my scars as if they were their own heart beat.

 _"I'm surprised this hasn't happened yet, you being close to death. But you could've ended this fight a while ago, you know. If you didn't pull your punches, it could've been over in mere seconds."_ A familiar voice called to me, and I tilted my head to the right to see Dean towering over me, hands in pockets. Tears formed in my eyes, dully trickling down my face.

"I've missed you," I mutter, disregarding his previous statements, and he chuckles. "I don't get that often. Now, get up, Cronus is being generous with this time so you don't look like a crazy person talking to themselves."

Sitting up, I look around me. Blood droplets still hung in air, Amai still hadn't completely moved his hand back to his sides, the heroes up in the window's mouths were beginning to form an 'o' shape.

"What's going on?" I ask, stepping forward and giving Death a big hug, blood on my neck seeping into his silk suit.

"I have to explain the final part of the deal to you," he sighs, a sad tone in his voice. "Remember how I said you'd become a demi-god after the plane crash?"

I pull my head back, looking up at him as I nod.

"Well...when I said you didn't die at the time means you don't die _ever._ Since you probably haven't noticed yet," Death reaches into his pocket, withdrawing a mirror and holding it out for me. "Look."

Looking at myself in the mirror, I looked sweaty, bloodied from the neck, but the weirdest part was the cut on my neck had completely healed up, only having the blood stains on it from where I was bleeding previously.

"What the actual eff?" I take a step back as Death pockets the mirror.

"The reason I'm explaining this to you is because you weren't the only person Zeus has chosen, monsters have been around for decades, no, centuries." Death informs, "That's why I couldn't tell you this information before: you'd grow suspicious and try not to do it. After all, if the hero can't die, why would you need to be chosen?"

I remained silent, allowing the information to sink in. "Who was it."

"Her name was Neha, a woman from a long-lost country. She was a fairly average looking woman, but the most enchanting part about her was her eyes: one was the color of the green grass, the other the color of the turquoise sea. About 1000 years ago monsters had began plaguing islands near her country, and she payed no mind to it until there was rumors they were heading to the island her younger brother was on. Determined, she set out on a boat to sail towards it, but soon there was a lightning storm and her boat broke. She drifted upon a piece of wood for 3 days until a trade ship, headed to the same island, rescued her. The captain of the ship taught Neha the art of swordsmanship and self-defense so she could protect herself. Everything was fine until sirens began trailing the ship at night, taking one man each night until only 10 sailors, the captain and Neha remained," Death explains, a misty look in his eyes.

"Determined to find the reason, Neha stayed up the entire night and heard music. Though it was a beautiful song, she payed no mind to it, until a sailor came out at night, almost jumping off the boat until Neha startled him, awakening him from his trance. The following night, Neha had all the sailors and the captain stuff their ears with cotton, so no man jumped overboard that night. Angry, the sirens came back the following two nights, but did not have any jump overboard. The boat soon arrived on the island, which was filled with many rivers in it, and Neha found her younger brother."

"The boat unloaded, and Neha decided she would stay on the island with her younger brother, who was overjoyed. She made sure the captain and sailors promised to plug their ears with cotton, then they set off, but gave her a talwar for protection. She soon learned that each night one person disappeared from the island, and she realized what was happening on the boat was happening on the island. At the town meeting, she instructed each person to wear cotton in their ears while they slept, or else they would be taken. No people were taken after that, and after two months of no people being taken they declared she could see into the future with one eye and the past with the other to determine what to do in the present. While she tried to disagree with what they said, they didn't listen, so she stopped arguing."

"However, one of the sirens told Poseidon this, and he became greatly interested. One day when Neha was cultivating fish from the stream, Poseidon's face appeared in the water next to her, and told her that if she wanted the people of the island to be forever left by monsters she'd jump into the ocean at midnight, for if not the island would be plagued by monsters for eternity."

"That island was Hawai'i, right?" I ask, causing Dean to nod. "It eventually split into smaller islands or volcanoes from Hawai'i offspringed other islands, so the newer islands were safe, too. Back to the story, so, Neha, the good soul she was, left the island that night after going to the town meeting. She proclaimed that she would be leaving to help other islands, but they were to still wear cotton in their ears every night. She left her brother with a tearful goodbye, and set off on a boat, a pocket watch in her dress. When midnight struck she jumped into the ocean, and was immediately dragged down by sirens. When Poseidon realized she couldn't breathe, he swam towards her and granted a bubble upon her head filled with air so she could breathe."

"What happened next?" I ask, eager to hear the rest of the story. She obviously wasn't close to Zeus, so her powers were most likely different.

"Upon Poseidon seeing her eyes he asked for her to predict the amount of sea weed that would wash upon the shore the next day. She told him that she didn't know, since she was never gifted with foresight. Angered, he cursed her to a life of blindness, and floated her back up to her boat."

"Confused, she couldn't find anything for days, almost starving until the god Apollo realized what his uncle had done. As the god of prophecy, he was angered she lied about prophecy until he realized she rejected all notions of it. He couldn't reverse the curse of blindness, but he had given her the ability to see into the future with her blue eye and into the past with her green eye so she could make decisions."

"Neha was confused at first, but eventually found her way around things. She lived upon her small boat for months until drifting upon a new continent. War was brewing, and she wanted to help the innocents escape. She cut off her hair and disguised as a man named 'Pavan' and fought under the army of that country, heading out to cities during her rounds and helping the others take refuge elsewhere before the war came to their town. After 5 years at age 24 she had climbed her way through the ranks when the war finally ended, she had become Major General of her section. She settled to the capitol, and met King Saaz, who applauded her for her work in the military. The two became friends, and when Neha revealed her true gender Saaz revealed his romantic feelings for her, the two wed."

"However, she saw into the future one night and saw that Saaz' brother had planned to kill her, then Saaz for the throne in two days time. She begged Saaz to run away with her and give up the throne to the brother, who would be a good king. Saaz agreed, and told Neha to leave before he announced it, to which Neha agreed. Saaz relieved himself of the throne, giving it to his brother, who felt sick to his stomach about the murder plot. After earning the crown before it was announced, the brother killed himself due to guilt, so Saaz retook the crown. However, Neha was already gone, and when she heard Saaz was still King she felt tricked, especially when he claimed Neha had died, after he was unable to find her."

"Angry, Neha went to the neighboring country and killed each monster there as a woman, earning her the respect of the Second Prince, who wed her. She quickly had that kingdom purge other kingdoms of their monsters, before merging those kingdoms with that. After 30 years and realizing she hadn't aged one bit since the time she talked with Poseidon, she went to the ocean and asked why she hadn't aged. Poseidon's face appeared and told her that she was to live her life in blindness until she learned the lesson to not lie about her propheticness, which would be impossible now that Apollo had given her the gift of foresight, so she was to live forever. She aged herself each day with makeup techniques so no one would be suspicious, but once her second husband had died she 'mysteriously' died afterwards, and they cremated a traitor's body as her own. She re-appeared later on again as Pavan in a united kingdom, marrying a high-court ill woman who would never have children. She continued destroying monsters, and around 1300 BC under the name of 'Neha' Zeus appeared before her, as the game with Hades had begun. She swore that she'd just continue to do what she did until she no longer wished to live, which Zeus agreed to. And about a year before you were in the plane crash, she took the talwal she had been given to her all those years ago by the captain and impaled herself, falling into the ocean and becoming sea foam."

"That's...horribly tragic," I mutter, causing Dean to nod. "I was familiar with her because of all the monsters she killed, she was one of the most memorable humans by far that I've ever met. She's with Saaz, now, because her spirit had her re-incarnated alongside Saaz so they're in the same school."

"Will she remember her past life?" I ask, poking one of the blood bubbles caught in mid-air, causing it to shift slightly.

"She'll have dreams, but she's most likely going to brush them off." He waves off, "While Zeus didn't directly have anything to do with her the first time Hades was set doing this game, he can't have a baby going around and killing monsters. Her time is over, and yours begun."

"I see," I mutter, "so once one dies, another person from different origins replaces them?"

"Yes, and Neha didn't die until she felt that she had seen enough of the world. She traversed around the world three times every century to make sure she's seen everything, and she left behind diaries. Her adopted grand-daughter published one way back, but it only had a few copies released. However, I can give you the key to the book room with the diaries."

"Please," I nod, as Death pulls out a key, placing it in my hand. His cool hands made me shudder as I put the key in my shoe.

"Our time seems to be running short," Dean mutters, looking at a pocket watch in his hands, before clasping it shut.

"Will I see you soon?" I ask, as Dean looks down. "I do not know, I only came because you needed to know about your immortality, but I do not know if I will be able to see you for a while. I was to be your trainer until the time came for you to be independent and grow on your own, so I would be considered unnecessary in this relationship until further."

I winced, "You're like the Captain to Neha," I mutter, and he nods, provoking a silence between us. I felt my heart throb painfully as tears formed in my eyes.

I had grown with Death, he helped me through troubled times, was a shoulder to rely on, and never seemed to judge me. I don't want him to leave, yet I know he has to. All I want is for him to hold me close and for us to be together, even if I only see him once a month or he texts me occasionally.

I...I think I'm in love with Death.

"Would you...come each time I'm near to Death?" I ask, as he smirks. "Well, you are near to me now-"

"Not like that," I laugh, "but every time my throat is slit or I'm in a tough situation?"

"I suppose it's possible," he mutters, "I was alerted when you were almost dead."

"How?"

"I felt a pulse," he taps on his own forehead, "right here."

"I see," I mutter, as I step forward, giving him a hug. "Please, when I text you respond back."

"I'll try my best," his muffled voice says, giving me a pat on the back. It was hard to pry myself from him, as I returned to the original spot I was in, laying on the floor.

"Goodbye, Gina."

"Don't say goodbye like we'll never see each other again, how about... see you later, alligator." I smile, blinking away a tear.

He paused, ruby-like eyes fixated on me, lost in thought. "Alright," he cleared his throat, "after a while, crocodile."

In the blink of an eye he was gone, and I turned my head back to Amai Mask. Then slowly, the blood droplets slowly moved upwards, speeding up until they splattered on his face, and his hand returned to his side. Jumping up on my feet, I raised a fist, choking back a sob.

I knew that Death and I won't see each other for a while. This felt like a break up, to be honest. Pressing my fist into his face, Amai Mask was knocked back into the cement wall, and the next wall, and the next, and the next until he slumped against the wall 5 rooms over. Looking at my smoking fist, I crumpled to my knees, wiping away the stray tears that had found their way down my face.

I wanted Death, and no matter how suicidal or emo it sounds, I want him here with me.


	4. Chapter 4

**December 3rd**

My ruby red heels clacked against the black marble staircase outside of Hero Headquarters, and I tucked a strand of hair that was too short for my bun. I had recently given myself a pair of garage cut bangs that looked fairly good, save for the fact I had trimmed some hair on the outside that was too short for buns. Regardless, my hair would eventually grow out anyway.

Stepping into the building, I flash the ID quickly at the guard as I make my way to the elevator, heading up the floors. I had been contacted shortly after the tournaments to learn the S-Class information by Amai.

* * *

 **2 days previous**

"What a pleasure surprise, Amai. Stopping by the monster attack that happened in my sector after a timely defeat and all the paparazzi had been cleared out, I wouldn't have suspected anything less," I greet with a petty-friendly smile, wiping the blood off my hands on a rag.

"I don't want to be publicly known to be friends with you, or even acquaintances, for that matter." He spits out, and I sigh, rolling my eyes. "Than what are you doing here, Amai."

"I wanted to be the one who told you I rejected joining the S-Class. I shall be ranked first among the A-Class, for the time being. If I didn't tell you, then you'd think I'm lower than I actually am."

Looking up at him in shock to see if he was joking, I was only met with a pair of serious sharp-golden eyes. "Why, though? I don't wish for this to fuel your already large ego, but you aren't too shabby, and you've got skills."

"I assume this was a compliment, which must be rare from heathens like you-"

"What did you say?!"

"Regardless," he continues, not daring to bat a blue eyelash in my direction, "I withdrew after our round-about fight."

"So? You literally killed me! I still have the scar to prove it," I swear out, pointing at the thin, white line on my throat. "I recovered enough for the time being to finish the fight, but the reason I ran out so quickly was to get a healer friend of mine to fix this!" I spit out the lie through my teeth, still trying to recuperate with the idea of being immortal.

"Water under the bridge," he waves off, "I never meant to try kill you originally, but I came to apologize for not only doubting your skills, but for calling you an evil villain, Gina Johnson."

Instead of responding, I crossed my arms, waiting for him to go on.

"I've done some Hero Association research on you and found you had defeated many monsters in A-City before the foundation was created, and also learned you had gone to a University for a while. You're clearly an intelligent individual who's overcome many hardships." His golden eyes held sincerity, and my heart thawed for a slight second.

"I thought you were evil, and during our battle my rage came out and I tried to kill you. If I cannot tell the difference between a hero and a villain, then I am not worthy for S-Class. But, you are no perfect hero. You do not seem to care about your hero appearance at all!" He rants, causing me to shrug.

"I serve the people, I don't think appearance really mattered, to be honest," I wave off, "I've always been in the shadows, only recently have news people been trying to interview me, and it's because the Hero Association released that they had finished deciding S-Class ranks. They've also been interviewing the others a lot more, too."

"But your appearance-!"

"I still don't care," I shrug, "back home I'd always be judged for my appearance since I'm a halfie, than I realized everyone has their quirks we have to deal with."

Amai paused, looking at me in confusion. "Island?"

"Oh! I'm from Hawai'i," I explain, "my mom's from here while my dad's a native there."

Amai paused, before ranting how I have to care even more about my appearance now that I was to be representing my home country. Stepping back, I groan slightly to myself.

"I get it, I get it. I'll talk to them about getting a hero name-"

"They've already registered one for you, actually," he informs, causing my jaw to drop. "What? When?"

"A couple hours ago, actually, they released it on their Hero Board page," he states, showing me his iPhone, "I look here at new heroes to see which are good enough for the association, but I was surprised to see this pop up."

Clicking on the article, my shaky finger scrolls through the page until I see the name.

"'Scarlet?' Seriously? Just because I have red hair?!" I grumble, as Amai rolls his eyes.

"Names are usually publicly chosen, since HQ isn't a naming business, after all. I don't wear a Sweet Mask-"

Pretty sure your personality facade is one...

"-besides, it summarizes you as a person. Maybe it's because you spill scarlet with monsters, or maybe it's your hair." He paused as his phone began ringing an alarm, "Ugh, I'm going to be late for an interview," he states, looking at his phone. "I must be off, Scarlet."

"Bye Amai." I cross my arms as he runs off, hopping into a limo that quickly speeds off.

* * *

 **PRESENT**

"Miss Johnson?" The secretary asks, looking up from her computer.

"Yes?"

"Please head into conference room 2."

Nodding a response, I stand up from my chair, smoothing out my black pencil skirt and white blazer, then headed to the conference room, knocking on the closed steel door.

"Enter."

Creaking open the door, I poked my head in to see 2 others, Kim-Chi and a man with cropped, short spiky black hair that resembled raven feathers that was spiked back. He had a pair of small, deep set eyes under intense brows

"Am I late?" I ask, causing Kim-Chi to shake her head. "No, no, you're just on time. Scarlet, I'd like you to meet Blast."

Looking towards the man, I noticed he was in formal business attire, too. He was of an enormous height, around 6' or higher, but he seemed to have an inner kindness under the stony facade.

"Pleasure," I smile, sticking my hand forward. He nods, accepting my hand with a firm shake. We sit down next to each other, facing Kim-Chi.

"Blast was unable to make the tournament we had for S-class the other day, but he's proven himself to be one of the most exceptional heroes we've ever seen. Since you both would technically share the top spot for S-class-"

TOP SPOT?!

"-we need to discuss how it'll be split."

"Hey, Blast, how long have you been a hero for?" I ask, as he pauses.

"Almost 3 decades."

Looking towards Kim-Chi, I shrug. "He has the top position, I'll take second. I respect seniority, I've only been doing this for a few years."

"O-oh, I see." Kim-Chi stutters, as I look over at Blast next to me. "Is this alright with you, Mr. Blast?"

"Yeah, I don't care who's first or not. I'm pretty hard to reach, so I do all my hero work on my own time," he waves off, and I stand up, causing Blast to follow.

"Alright, then it's settled."

"Wait! We need to discuss pay!"

"Pay?" We echo, both sitting back down.

"Yes, as the top two heroes you'd both be making this amount yearly, alongside any commissions made," Kim-Chi informs, "the average yearly commission for a hero of your caliber is on there."

Picking up the sheet, Blast and I crane our necks together to look at the paper.

"Damn," Blast mutters while I let out a low whistle. "This is more than what some doctors make..." I mumble, as Kim-Chi nervously chuckles.

"We run off the tax-payers money since we've began our merging with the government, so-"

"Wait, you do?" I ask, putting the paper back down.

"Well, yes-"

"I've barely been able to pay taxes the last few months because of this sudden increase in salary?" I groan, pointing at the six-figure number on the sheet.

"Technically-"

"Please reduce my salary to 11-" I shudder at the largeness of the salary, "billion yen a year (100,000 american dollars)."

"No issue, you will still earn many commissions," she nods quickly, writing something on a notepad. "And of you, Blast?"

"I will do the same. If we are to serve the people, then we should not have them struggle in taxes to pay us," he valiantly declares, as Kim-Chi continues writing.

"The other heroes of S-class are to be paid 3/4 of the previous salary shown, shall we reduce that, too? If so, overall we will save tax payers..." Kim-Chi pulls out a calculator, punching in numbers at the speed of light, "Half a million yen a year."

"Do it!" Blast and I chorus, causing Kim-Chi to let out a quick shriek before writing it down. After all was said and done, Blast left and I headed out to get a suit made.

"Ah, this is 2 billion yen for a suit. Do you still want?" The short tailor asks, causing me to immediately leave the store.

I don't have that kind of money now! Who does?! I'll just wear a t-shirt or something when fighting villains...

* * *

 **December 25th**

Finishing the set up of the dinner table, I shift the champagne glass slightly to the left, before grinning to myself. I had met up with Penny in A-City after I left the hero meeting and we chatted for a bit when she showed me two tickets home for Christmas. However, due to my high rank in being a hero, I was unable to leave the country in case there was something to happen, but somehow she didn't know I was a hero, so I said something about the electrical business being extremely busy this time of the year.

Also, since the event that took place almost three years ago, I had developed a large disdain for airplanes, which isn't hard to understand. I had Skyped my family early today to apologize for not making it home for Christmas again due to business and not the inability to afford a ticket home. However, I sent them the equivalent of 10,000 American Dollars home (which was made up of my November/December commission, surprisingly) to make up for it.

They weren't too sad, as you can probably figure.

So, I was doomed to face another lonely Christmas, since it was the Christmas before the previous which I had spent with Death. My third year here, which is strange to say and three year's since I've met him. Just the mention of his name made my heart pound, but I quickly ignored it. Standing up from the chair, I headed over to the laptop on the counter which was hooked up to a speaker, and I quickly started playing my Christmas playlist. Humming to myself, I quickly checked a favorited website, grinning to myself at the low rate for the day. So, he probably would show up after all.

Humming alongside some Dean Martin, I head towards the kitchen counter and roll up my sleeve.

 **(Trigger warning)**

"'Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow,'" I sing along, unsheathing a knife and quickly slash it deep into my wrist. It stung momentarily as I held my wrist above the sink, with crimson waves dripping into the sink.

 **(Trigger ending)**

A sudden coldness entered the room, and I turned my head around to see a shocked Dean. "What the hell are you doing?" Death asks, as I hold up my bleeding arm in greeting, watching the cut heal itself, only showing the blood left on it.

"I wondered if this would work," I smile, turning my hand around and quickly scrubbing the blood off my wrist with clean water. "Since this is technically a way to kill oneself, and it would summon you. So, I summoned you here for Christmas dinner."

Pulling the sweater back over my wrist, I gestured at the table. It had ham, a bottle of champagne, poured apple cider, mashed potatoes, greens. "I have an Apple pie warmed up in the oven for later," I inform, sitting down at the table, looking pointedly at the chair in front of me. "You can sit, you know."

"I'm...actually speechless. I'd never think you'd try to do something like this," he shakes his head, but a small smile graces his lips as he sits down.

"You can spare the night, correct? I made sure to google that Christmas wasn't a big death day," I assured, as he arches a black brow.

"How considerate. Shall we say a good-Christian prayer before we begin dinner?" He coos mockingly, holding his hands together like he was a holy saint. Laughing, I shake my head.

"My family is Deist, so you can pray all you want," I notify, as I cut myself a piece of ham.

"Really now? Are you still a Deist, even after meeting some of the big guys?" He asks, and I shrug.

"Kind of. I know they're real and everything, but they aren't always paying attention or interacting with humanity, are they? That's the point of Deism." I scrape the ham onto my plate, before glopping some mashed potatoes on my plate too. Death shrugs as he cuts himself a piece of ham.

"I suppose you are right." There was a pause, showing the end of that topic.

"How's Cat?" I ask as a sparkle appears in his eye.

"He loves the office! And everyone there loves him, it kinda brings a sense of joy to the place."

"Speaking of work, anything interesting happening at work?" I ask, nibbling on a piece of ham.

"Oh! There's this one shinigami named Grell, and oh my stars, he's a real piece of work. The other day..." Death starts, continuing into a large story involving a butler, some chainsaws, and a huge cake. The conversation flowed naturally from there, and we continued to talk until my clock struck midnight.

"Huh, it's the 26th already, time flies by fast," I mutter, taking a sip of champagne. "I feel as if I entered a food coma after we ate all that apple pie."

"It was worth it," Dean burps, causing me to chuckle slightly. "Here, I got you something." I slowly rolled off the couch, heading over to the miniature Christmas tree that sat by the window. Pulling out a boxed gift from next to it, I passed it over to Dean.

He slowly takes off the top, pulling out a large knit sweater and laughing at it.

"'Death before Decaf,'" he reads, looking at the skull floating in a mug on the front, "you remembered."

"Yeah, when the old Starbucks lady wasn't there once, so the person in her place got you a decaf coffee. You spit it out all over my Psychology teacher," I giggle, causing Dean to chuckle at the memory. "He was livid, and you pretended that I was your English speaking cousin who didn't understand culture differences."

"Then he started asking questions about V-City, thinking it's the same as Hawai'i!" I laugh, causing Dean to join in. We soon settled down, causing me to wipe a laugh tear from my eye. He took off his jacket and undid his button shirt, revealing a marbled, chiseled body. My cheeks tinted pink as I willed myself to look away, but I was unable to. There was a faint scar on his abdomen, but before I could examine it further he had pulled the sweater over his head.

"This is very cozy, thank you," he smiles, causing my insides to flutter. "No problem."

"Next time I see you, I'll give you a Christmas gift. Sorry I didn't get you one, I didn't know we'd have time to meet up-" Dean apologizes, causing me to wave it off.

"No worries, I'm glad you could swing on by." I smile back at Dean, who checks his pocket watch as the smile falls from his face.

"I have something coming up in a few minutes in H-City, a multiple car collision that the other shinigamis can't do. I've got to get going," he divulges, standing up from the couch, draping his shirt and overcoat over his arm.

"Oh! Don't stress it, this was sudden and everything," I reassure, standing up. He outspreads his arms as I giddily smile, wrapping my arms around him, causing my heart to feel as if it was in a horse race.

"Thanks for having me," he said, breath smelling warm and of apple pie. Breathing in his scent, it smelt clean definitely, with a hint of citrus blanketed by the smell of lilies. Though it was technically a feminine scent, it worked with him well. He pulled back from the hug, and I stepped back to.

"Merry Christmas, Gina."

"You too, Thanatos," I used his true name. With a happy twinkle in his eye, he smiled at me once more before he disappeared. The smile fell off my face as I began cleaning up, but the giddy feeling inside of me kept me up and warm for the remainder of the night.

* * *

 **December 31st**

"Is it really necessary for this?" I grumble, adjusting the dress straps. I was wearing a sleek satin black dress that went down to my ankles, paired with silver heels that made me a couple inches taller.

"We need to announce the S-class members," Kim-Chi mutters, as I look around the ball round. "But, isn't it bad we have the top heroes here? What if there's a crisis?"

"Lower A-rank heroes will be taking care of it, besides, this is the safest event in town. There should be no need to be worried," Kim-Chi brushes off, before going else where to speak with others. Sighing, I tuck a curled strand behind my ear, going over to talk with Tatsumaki: rank 3.

"Hey, Scarlet-"

"My name is Gina, Tatsumaki."

"Whatever. Is Blast here? I know he's the highest ranked," she brushes off, causing me to shake my head. "He's not really interested in the association, and the only reason I'm here tonight is because Blast isn't, so I have to make a speech on the behalf of our class."

"Sounds dreadful," she mutters, causing me to nod. "Absolutely, but since the Association was previoously run off private donations and is planning to announce the merge with the government, it's necessary."

I forgot about that. The government of the Main Continent had finally decided to add the hero division to the government, so we'd become paid employees of the government and receive extra rights. And I'd become an official citizen as a high class hero, which really rocks so I can't disagree with it.

We went to our table, sitting among high government officials. I gave phony smiles and some charismatic pictures with them. Agoni gave a long winded speech, which we all politely applauded to.

"May the dance commence!" He finished as I leaned over to Tatsumaki.

"Dance?"

"You didn't know? Us heroes were brought to dance with high rank officials to show the peace-" she muttered back, "luckily, I look young enough so no one bothers with me. However, though you look young, you're not off limits."

She nudged me lightly as I turned my gaze to see a dark haired woman, a pair of round glasses obscuring her face. Her brown hair was pulled into a bun, and she seemed in her mid-30s.

"Hello," she smiles, her voice serene as a summer breeze. "I have a friend who'd like to make a business inquiry for you. Can you possibly come with me?"

While this is a bit shady I agreed, standing up and not wishing to cause a scene. I follow her back to a side room, which was painted a dark maroon. 2 fine, overstuffed leather chairs sat in front of a crackling fire, the chairs backs to me.

"She's arrived," the woman announces, turning to me. She removed the glasses and pocketed them, resting a hand on my shoulder. Her face was joyously round, but a tinge of sadness was in her eyes.

"Best of luck to you, darling."

With that, she left the room as I turned to the man in the chair.

"Come closer," his deep voice beckoned, "and sit beside me."

I cautiously stepped forward, until I finally sat in the chair, turning my gaze to the handsome man. He was regally beautiful, with facial features carved of cold, stone marble. His obsidian eyes flickered over to me, matching the lightly waved black hair. He looked like an otherwordly King, not bound to these rules.

"Who are you?" I ask as his light pink lips parted into a smirk.

"I am known to some as Pluto, but my more well-known name is Hades. Pleasure to meet you," he grinned as I felt my body tense. He raised a brow, parting his mouth ever so slightly.

"Ah? You wish to fight me? I understand, it is your duty, after all that is what my brother has bestowed upon you, after all." His tone darkened, before his obsidian eyes met mine. "Tonight, we do not meet as enemies, so fear not."

I pause, regaining my composure. "I...I don't know what to say, in all honesty. But since we are exchanging introductions, I am Gina Johnson."

"I've heard, you're the latest talks of the gods," he sighs, "Neha has long passed, I suppose you're her replacement." Though that sounded harsh, it was true. "Did you feel as if you've been training your life for this moment? Did you feel destined to save humanity?" He continues as I laugh.

"I was in a plane crash and was given the option to die or live with this as my new career. You can see how that went," I respond as he arches a dark brow.

"That is odd, Zeus made it seem as if you were some almighty-heavenly warrior. But, this does make more sense of him, he is the type to embellish to make his image larger," he growls out in spite as I sigh.

"It was strange, I must admit that." I honestly admit, turning my gaze to the fireplace. "I thought that all my life I would follow a plan. I'd get my doctorate, and treat sick animals as a vet. I'm still helping others, but not in the same way."

"It is unfortunate you are pulled into this, and for that I apologize. I suppose Zeus has not explained this all to you, and he has a tight reign over Thanatos this time, hence why his explanations are so restrained."

"This time?" I ask, turning my head back over to Hades. He chuckled, withdrawing a flute of champagne from the table next to him as he took a sip.

"Ah, I should've expected this. Thanatos, like Poseidon, is a neutral being. He was originally swaying towards my side, ensuring that all despair that occurred was in order. He was a good man, still is, and we have been friends since the beginning of time. And Death had also become long friends with Neha during her time on Earth, as destruction was left in her wake. To ensure she would be reincarnated with her first love, Death agreed to join Zeus' side to make sure all my 'tricks' were exposed. He also had to train you to know all my weaknesses," Hades gave me a side smirk, "how is that working out for you then?"

"Well enough," I respond, not appreciating Hades' cheekiness. "What happens after this whole scheme is over?"

"If Zeus wins, I'm still ruler of Hell with slightly less dignity remaining than before, but ultimately the same," He answers, "but if I win, Zeus and I merely switch roles. He and his wife will become rulers of Hell, and my Persephone and I shall become the rulers of Heaven. Death and I will continue to be friends, regardless. Hell, if you aren't replaced, I'll even let you live."

Replaced, just like a game of chess. Was this all that humans were to gods?

"But the people! The monsters, what of them-?"

"The people shall remain, obviously. I'm not going to become a mad, raving dictator, for hell's sake!" Hades chuckled, "If there was no people to rule over, then Heaven and Hell would have no purpose, and us gods would fade forever. There'd be nothing on an oblique planet except rock. The 'monsters' as you call it shall return to Hell as a little 'surprise' present for my brother."

"So, why are people dying, then? I mean, if you're all about people remaining, then why are innocents dying?" I felt my voice rise, but I clenched my toes to keep myself calm.

"As the ruler of Hell, I am used to Death. If people are killed or die falling asleep, it doesn't affect whether they go to heaven or hell. If they were bad or decent, they take their time in Hell until reincarnation," he answers, waving me off. "Once they go into heaven they're done with all of that."

"That still doesn't explain why you're letting your monsters kill off the people-"

"I don't control them, alright?" Hades responds, "While they are under my wing, I don't affect their abilities. They make those conscious decisions themselves, including any human who decides to break a law, creating more chaos on your Earth."

I leaned back in the chair, realization striking me.

"So, chaos will continue for the rest of time, no matter how much the defenders of Earth try to protect it?"

"Of course. The only way to end this idiotic game that's been going on for around one thousand years is to get through my forces and finally defeat me," he states bluntly, "and while I'm all for a lovely ending, I want this lovely ending to be mine."

"I understand that." I quietly respond, getting a look from him, "I really do, we all want our happy endings and fairy tales. I never wanted to be roped into this mess, I only wanted to go achieve my goals, but a road block got in the way and threw me and my car into the ocean."

"I poorly picked lots, which sounds a lot less dramatic but inevitably caused all of this chaos. But, now I know I am more fit of a ruler than Zeus has ever been. I've seen human suffering for thousands upon thousands of years, and I know what to do to help the people and to provide. I'm not going to go create chaos as Zeus suggests I would. While I cannot completely eradicate the plague that has been betrothed upon mankind, I can ease their suffering. I can ensure such global catastrophes are prolonged enough so the humans can grow and innovate once more so they can fix those issues, rather than Zeus ignoring the issues."

His eyes held such passion when he said this, and I felt my chest tighten at his words. It was almost scary how much Hades sounded like a better ruler than Zeus, in all honesty. And there's almost no bad myths about Hades in Greek mythology, save for when he kidnapped Persephone and all; but compared to Zeus, Hades was an angel.

"Then...we shall end it one day," I quietly speak and he arches a brow. "How so?"

"When I feel as if I am ready, I shall fight you and whatever forces you bring," I continue on, looking him dead in the eye, "I do not wish to prolong the suffering of the people. You shall have your answer if you make it to the heavens or not, and I shall have mine when the people are protected."

Standing up, I give him a short nod. "This has been more insightful than I ever believed it to be, so thank you for your time. And please, make sure your 'monsters' are more controlled."

With that, I turned from Hades and left the man in the room as he stared at the fire. The flames perfectly reflected in his black eyes as he glanced to the side as a side door opened.

"You were listening the whole time, Ares?" He coos out mockingly. "Are you excited to fight another Early defender?"

"Neha was a skilled warrior of centuries of training, all the while blind," Ares responds, crossing his muscular and scarred arms, "I do not know if a human can ever top her skill. But, I guess you can say that this new girl has my attention."

"Don't try to kill her now, while she is still developing. Though she promised to end it as soon as she can, I have the feeling she may need decades to finally do so and end this war," Hades glances at the embers, "I hope she does so, eventually though. Zeus is growing weak, but is too stubborn and prideful to relinquish the throne before he fades. I've got to say that giving him a portion of his power was a genius idea, so she'll eventually match me in terms of godly power."

"But not now?"

"Hell no, not for decades."

* * *

 **February 14th**

Alright, Christmas went well, so let's try Valentine's day. Spaghetti, red wine, and oreo truffles in the freezer after swimming on the roof of the new apartment I'm renting. This is going to be fabulous! I didn't necessarily like cutting myself since I still have a faint scar there (though the one on my neck is mostly faded) so I have a new plan.

Adjusting my ponytail in the mirror, I looked up and down my swim suit. It was black tankini that fit my figure cutely: perfectly appropriate.

Hopping in the bathtub, I took the plugged in toaster in my hands and quickly tossed it in the bathtub.

Nothing! Damn it, curse me for being able to absorb electricity! Though, this did feel like a good, warm bath with light tingly sensations, so I will remember this for later. Getting out of the tub and taking the toaster out, setting it aside for future baths, I treaded up the stairs to the rooftop pool, which I had reserved for the rest of the day.

While I had gotten a better apartment, I had given Penny my old one so we could live closer. She was working as a secretary for a fashion industry nearby, so this was close to work and close to me, but not too close to me. With my commission money I had purchased this new apartment with 3 rooms and 2 bathrooms, with actual functioning utilities, a beautiful view of the city and a rooftop pool.

Pulling out the bluetooth speaker, I connect my phone to it as a relaxing song played.

 _''I saw you in a dream and y_ _ou had stayed the same._ _You were beckoning me, and s_ _aid that I had changed._ _Tried to keep my eyes closed,_ _I want you so bad, t_ _hen I awoke and it was so sad...''_ the song starts as I pull out a knife, quickly slashing it on my wrist as it bleeds onto the floor. A chill passes through my body as I turn to see Thanatos, patiently tapping his foot.

"You tried using a toaster?" He asks as I frown. "You could've come then so I wouldn't have to bloody my wrists," I retort, holding up both of my wrists to show the already healed wound.

"I thought it was funny. Besides, most of the time I need an attempt of death to notice something occur. I just thought you were taking a bubble bath."

"A bubble bath? With a toaster?" I laugh out, shaking my head in amusement. "You want to go for a dip?"

"Sure," he responds, beginning to take off his clothes, leaving on only a pair of black boxers. We dove into the pool, and spent the rest of Valentine's together.

Maybe to see him I'd have to risk a little.


	5. Chapter 5

**July 4th**

"Scarlet! How did you do it?"

"Scarlet! How come no one has seen you outside of your job-?"

"Scarlet!"

"Scarlet!"

"Scarlet!"

"No further questions, please," I bat away the interviewers as if they were mere flies, pushing towards a taxi.

"Amai Mask never bats away interviewers like this! Does this show that you reject the public?" An interviewer calls out from the crowd as I let out an annoyed sigh.

"I would prefer to not be compared to my peers. Besides, today is a holiday for me-"

"As an immigrant to this country, do you feel as if this dampens your-"

"You know what?" I stop, turning to the crowd. "I am sure that I've answered these questions before, just search the internet!"

I climbed in the car, looking at the taxi driver. "Go as fast as you can before they blockade us," I demand as he gulps, before speeding off. I let out a sigh of relief, reaching into my wallet and pulling out a hefty tip.

"This is for the rude behavior exhibited by the press and me," I apologize, placing the equivalent of 50 dollars onto the headboard.

"It is no worries, they bombard you with questions so much," he answers as I sigh. "The Association wants me to hold a press conference so they can swing away with personal questions, but those get too uncomfortable for me."

"They might stop for a bit," he says as I nod.

" _A bit_. Some fake, internet scandal will soon surface and I'll just have to deal with this all again."

"Don't worry too much about it, just wait for some other A or S-class hero scandal to pop up before you hold your press conference. Less interviewers will show up," he states as I grin.

"Hey, that's pretty genius. Oh! I almost forgot, today's your daughter's birthday, right?" I ask, reaching into my bag.

"Yes, how did you remember?" He asks as I look at Bart. Bart is almost always my taxi driver when I need to escape from the press. Some call it good luck, others call it coincidence, while I call it a blessing from the heavens.

He was a fourty-something year old man from H-City, living in an apartment with his three kids, wife and his wife's mom. Z-City isn't a safe place, anymore, it's rapidly becoming a danger zone with the multiple monsters coming in.

I fear that can partially be blamed on me.

"Why wouldn't I? I got her a signed vinyl by Amai Mask, since she likes him a lot, right?" I ask, pulling out the vinyl. His jaw dropped as I set it on the dashboard on top of the money. Though I hate asking Amai for favors, Bart is a nice man and deserves nice things for helping me.

"Gina, this is really too much-"

"You're a good friend, Bart, let Addie enjoy it," I wave off, pointing at a cafe across the street. "You can drop me off here."

He pulled to the curb as I hopped out, waving goodbye as I slipped my glasses on. Entering the cafe, I look up at the menu, eyes scanning for something new to try.

"Hey, missy," a little voice calls from behind me as I turn around. A pudgy girl sits there, crossing her arms.

"Yes?"

"You kinda look like Scarlet," she states as a flat look falls on my face. "You don't say?"

"Do you get that a lot?" She asks as I nod.

"Do you know her?"

"Maybe."

"That's stupid," she sticks her tongue out. "If you're not a hero and just a copycat, that makes you dumb. And a cosplayer. A dumb cosplayer."

I give a sigh, turning around. "Whatever you say, kid."

I stepped up next in line and place my order, heading over to the back table where Penny sat. She sat there wearing a fashionable party dress, with large heels.

Everything in style, of course.

"Penny?" I ask as she stands up, looking me up and down.

"Damn, this outfit is getting old," she mutters as I roll my eyes, sitting down across from her.

"Happy Fourth to you, too," I sarcastically reply as she glares at me.

"Not my fault you refuse to take time off work to go see the family," she responds.

"I can't take time off work. Besides, you know how I am with planes." I shudder just at the thought of those vile metal contraptions.

Stupid planes got me in this mess, anyway.

"Whatever. Now, about the new costume," she starts, holding up a sketched image as I wince.

"That's practically a bra and shorts!"

"Fan service, duh!" She explains, before chuckling. "I'm just messing with you, that's for some C-Class hero. Now, this is what I was thinking about for you."

Currently, Penny is one of the only people, alongside Bart, I know who is smart enough to connect that me with glasses is the same as me as a hero. Did the people on this continent have some kind of Superman-stupidity where they cannot realize I'm the same person?!

It was actually pretty good. It consisted of a pair of dark red spandex bodysuit with black boots up to the knees. The sleeves ended at my wrists, and had gold patterns stitched up the arms, shoulders, legs and bodice. The best part was the detachable black scarf, stitched with the same gold details. Once attached, I can pull it up as a black hood, but it's also detachable.

"I've got to say that you've outdone yourself," I comment, giving Penny a big smile. Her mouth opened in shock, eyes alight with joy.

"Really? So, you'll commission me?"

"Yeah, sure," I respond, "just let me know when you need to get my measurements-"

"I already have them, actually. I was hoping you'd say yes, so the costume is already in the back of my car-" she rambles as I deadpan.

Of course she did.

"Here's your tea, Miss," the barista says, passing me the tea. I barely had time to grab it and thank him as Penny was already dragging me to her car. I stumbled after her, sipping my drink all the while.

"How much is it going to be?" I ask as she pops open the trunk.

"Call it even at 500,000 yen," she states, as I do the mental math.

"That's, like, 4,000 dollars! No!" I respond, "Make it 250,000 and we have a deal. Just remember who is letting you use their apartment."

She groans, passing me the bag. "Fine, but you better credit me if people ask who made your costume and convinced you to get rid of that ratty old thing."

"It's not ratty, it's comfortable." I stick my tongue out at her. "Is this the correct material I was talking to you about?"

"Yeah, it should have a good wear on it. I don't know why you wanted some Themos in there, since those get really staticky, but it was your choice," she observes as I force a smirk down.

"It's good material."

"Now, go put on the suit and find someone to fight!" She exclaims as I roll my eyes. I head back inside the coffee shop and force myself into the skin-tight bodysuit that fit like a glove. Walking out, Penny 'wows' as she made me spin for her, snapping pictures all the while.

"I'm featuring this on my Instagram!"

My phone dinged twice as I looked at it. The first notification was Penny sending the photos, and the second was a crime alert. Looking at Penny, I point at my phone.

"Where do I even put this!? Is there pockets on this thing?!"

"We can put a pocket area in your boots later. For now, just give it to me!"

Groaning, I toss her my phone as I take a running start, before jumping into the air and allowing electric currents to carry me to the crime scene.

* * *

 **November**

"You're 22 and you've barely had a college experience!" Penny shrieks, "What do you do with your friends in your time off?"

"I hang out with you or Tatsumaki and Fubuki."

"Tatsumaki is six years your elder! And you only hang out with Fubuki because you know her through Tatsumaki!" Penny face palms, inhaling through her nose. "What happened to your business?"

"Oh, I sold it. I couldn't handle being a hero and owning that."

"What about your boyfriend?"

"I don't have one." I feel my cheeks flush red as Penny waggles her brows. "Which lucky hero is it?"

Eh, I wouldn't say Dean is exactly a 'hero.'

"Penny, he's not a hero, just an ordinary guy. Besides, you should mind your own business, my social life isn't affecting you."

"I know that, but you just seem so sad," she drawls out, sitting beside me as Tater Tots, the cat, pads up to Penny and sits on her lap. She strokes it as I reach out to give Tater Tots a scratch on his fatty neck, but Penny pulls him away.

"You don't deserve to be with Tater Tots if you can't get a guy."

"How does that even correlate?!"

"It doesn't, but you're eventually going to become a crazy hero cat lady. I don't want that for you."

We sat in silence for a bit, before she attempts to swipe at my glasses and steal them. I lean back, giving her a 'wtf' look.

"Those glasses are so ugly! Let me get you a new pair!"

"No!"

* * *

 **November**

Lacing up my jogging shoes, I head out the door as I make my way down to the usual park. Earbuds bob in my ears as I run to the beat of the music, turning the corner to get to Juniper park. The sun didn't bother me too much today since I was sent a baseball cap from my dad, and my glasses had changed shades to become sunglasses.

However, the thing that did bother me was that Juniper park had been closed for construction today. Biting my inner cheek in frustration, I decided to head to Lilac Park instead, albeit it was an extra 5k to go there and another 5k to get back, but that's alright.

Jogging to Lilac park, I fall into a relatively nice pace as I begin to catch up with the jogger in front of me. I tipped my hat downward more to shield me against the bright reflection of the sun against their bald, shiny head. Ugh, this is going to be so annoying if I'm behind them for the entirety of this jog.

I begin running slightly to the left, not sparing the man a glance as I lightly sprint a few meters ahead, before cutting in front of them. I fell back into my normal pace, then, as I continued to run.

Loud footsteps sounded from outside my earbuds, as I turned to see the man sprint up in front of me, cutting in front of me in turn. His grey sweatshirt and grey sweatpants didn't show any signs of sweat, yet, but I bet I can fix that.

I jog up a bit more so I'm next to him, slowly picking up my pace. He soon followed, picking up his own pace as well. Soon, we were racing through the park as bursts of wind and energy crackled behind us; feet breaking through the concrete path.

I looked at him from the corner of my eye to see a serious expression on his face, contorting his cheekbones and eyes to look extremely intense. Looking ahead, I noticed that the overview of the pond began soon, and we were rapidly approaching the fence.

As we were about to hit the fence, he turned last second as I jumped over the fence, using the momentum and some electrical currents to propel me over the lake and to the opposite side.

The path looped around the pond, and now I was ahead of him.

Landing on my feet lightly, I return to a normal jog, tapping my earbuds to make sure they stayed in. Maybe running in Lilac Park today was a bit more interesting than usual.

Hearing the thundering and breaking of concrete behind me, I pause to see the grey sweatpant man racing harder than he ever has as he tried to pass me. Turning around, I stick out my leg last minute as he trips over it. An immense force pushes on my leg as he trips, and if I wasn't as trained as I am now, it would be obvious he would've broken my leg.

He soared through the air, before tumbling through the concrete and breaking some chunks; ending with his final bounce off the concrete. Jogging to him, I extend a hand.

"You okay there, dude?" I ask, as he looks up at me. His face looked duller now, and he resembled a tan egg with his bland features.

"Yeah, just tripped." He stood up, ignoring my hand completely.

"Nice race, that was fun," I compliment, "I usually don't have a buddy to race with."

"It was a change of pace," he responds, and I nod. "I agree. My name's Gina, we should run more."

"Gina?" He asks, giving me a confused look. I chuckle, "Yeah, I'm a foreigner, hence the name."

"Oh, I see. I'm Saitama." He looks at me as if he wants me to remember something, but all I could think of was how he resembled an egg.

"Well, nice to meet you. Do you usually run in this park?" I ask as he nods.

"Everyday."

"I don't usually run here, I usually run in Juniper Park," I respond. His face twitches into a frown.

"Isn't Juniper Park where those rich people live?"

"Eh, I don't think so, I'm not that rich. Most of my money goes to my family overseas, to necessities, or some charities. I'm pretty low maintenance."

"Oh."

My phone beeped as I looked at it, a frown twitching onto my face. "You've got to be kidding me," I grumble, shoving my phone back in my pocket. Looking at Saitama, I gave them a sad smile.

"Duty calls. I'll see you around."

"'Kay."

Giving him a wave, I jog off, building up speed. Once I exit the park, I tear off my glasses and shove them into my hoodie pocket, zipping it up.

I don't understand why other heroes always walk around in their costumes, I barely have time to put it on myself. Amai constantly scolds me for not always upholding a heroic image, but I believe my life is much quieter that way; and compared to the havoc, press-filled lives other heroes lead, I enjoy mine much more.

Launching off the ground as electric currents carry me through the air, I plummet down to the ground and roll to a stop in front of a large, pinetree-looking villain.

"I am Prime Pine!" It announces, needles rustling. "All shall bow before me!"

Looking at the base of the tree, I noticed that some low-rated heroes had giant pine needles sticking their their chest. A frown formed on my face.

Imagine being killed by a damn Christmas tree.

"Everyone!" I turn around, looking at the petrified citizens who remained. "Leave!"

They began to scurry off as the tree loudly huffed. "You dare banish my followers? Prepare to die!"

"I'd like to see you try," I chuckle, as it quickly shoots pine needles at me. I dodge each one, as an idea comes into my head.

Running to the base of the tree, I raise a foot and quickly kick the base. All the needles fall off, and the tree is de-rooted from the ground.

That wasn't too hard.

"Oh my god! It's Scarlet!" A lone citizen declares. "She did it again!"

People began to swarm me as I felt my eye twitch. While I know fighting Hades or whomever is on his side might not be in the near future, it would definitely be more exciting if he came down to fight.

He may be giving me time to improve, but in all honesty, Hades might not be too shabby of a ruler if I don't have to deal with weird monsters like Prime Pine on a daily basis.

My phone beeped again as I look at it.

 _Coupon for 10% off at CJPenny's!_

"Oh! Crime never rests, but neither do heroes!" I quickly declare, before running off and jumping away.

Close one, Gina.

* * *

 **January 4th**

Another successful Christmas with Death has passed, and it's been amazing. This year, he actually got me something: a vinyl player! He also brought me some old and new vinyls, and it honestly made me feel so happy. He felt pretty sad that Cat had died at work, but apparently Hades made it some kind of ghost-cat, so they continue to linger around the office; albeit, a bit more dead and glowy.

I had gotten him a new pair of gloves I had knit, and while they don't compare with a vinyl player, he seemed to have really enjoyed it.

"I'm so excited to have a girl's day," Penny blabbers, holding up a nail polish color. "Do you think this dark blue is good? Or," she held up a slightly-different shade of dark blue, "this one?"

"Uhhh..."

"You're right! I should go with the first." Penny began to paint her hand as I randomly picked out a sparkly black, painting my own. Penny had convinced me to do two things, lately.

One was always wear my hero costume under my regular clothes, and the second was to come to a girl's night in.

And I'm obligated to do both, now.

Some sappy romance played in the background of Penny's new apartment, as I zoned out as my phone dinged.

Glancing over, my eyes widened at the text.

'Scarlet, travel to A-City immediately! Dragon-level threat!'

I stood up as Penny immediately pulled me down. "Oh no! You're not zooming off to A-City on you're day off."

"But-"

"Somebody else will take care of it. The corporation is taking advantage of you, darling," Penny stated, eyes glued on her nails as she filed and primed them.

"I'm the second highest hero, technically the first since Blast does what he wants in an incognito way," I grumble in defiance. "It's my job."

"You seem so awfully stressed, though." Penny's brows wrinkle in concern. "You know, I'm just trying to help you."

I nod, beginning to realize that I haven't had one, non-bloody day since I became a hero. "You're right. I have another vacation day tomorrow, too."

"Good for you! I can call my friend Fabio and book you for a massage! The people there have magic hands," Penny informs as I laugh.

"That doesn't sound too bad. I'm looking forward to it.

* * *

 **The Next Day**

"What do you mean you're 'closed due to mosquitoes?!' Just get a spray!" I ask over the phone, pausing on the walk there.

"There's mosquitoes everywhere! One of my employees is dead!" Fabio sobs, as I frown.

"Can I reschedule for later, then?" I ask as Fabio bawls loudly.

I hang up quickly, feeling a small prick on my left hand. Looking down, I see a small, little black mosquito. Frowning, I smack it on my skin, causing it to splatter a little bit of blood over my hand.

Gross. My phone rings again, and I see that Fabio was attempting to call me. Grimacing, I quickly slide my phone onto silent, continuing to walk. About two blocks from here is a Dairy Queen, maybe that's something that'll make this day better.

Another sting occurred, this time on my hand. I smack it away as I turn the street corner.

A giant, mosquito lady flew in place, swarms of black mosquitoes around her as a blonde man stood, looking up at her.

Are you freaking kidding me?! What's with these villains lately?!

Prime Pine?! Dumpster Dude?! Mosquito Mom?!

I know that some of these villains are created on their own, but come on, Hades! These better not be your doing!

Suddenly, the swarms raced forward at the man as my eyes widened. I started running forward, feeling electricity crackle around me, until a fire burst around the man, incinerating all the mosquitoes.

Oh, that was easy. I let the electricity ease around me, halting it to a stop.

His hand was left glowing a molten color, steam rising from it. He said something to her, as she began laughing.

Before I knew it, the two were fighting. Should I intervene?

Penny's voice floated through my head, reminding me it's my day off.

Alright, I'll only intervene once he gets injured.

She kicked him to the ground as he stumbled back by me, rolling to a stop. "Get out of here, citizen."

"I just want to go to Dairy Queen, but your fighting is blocking the path."

"I see...it shall only be a few minutes more."

"Alright."

He began shooting fire out of his...cyborg arms?! I see, that is his source of power. The mosquito lady suddenly sped up, tearing his arm off. She spun around in the air, giving me a wild look.

"Your hair is as red as blood, which I shall drain from you!" She laughs, as I frown.

"That's an awfully gross comparison. You're quite rude, tearing people's arms off and all."

Her smile falls from her face, as she flies up higher.

"This isn't good," I mutter, before turning to the cyborg. "How's your arm?"

"Broken."

"I see..." What a tasteful observation he's made.

Suddenly, a black swarm of mosquitoes formed around her, swarming in a large, black sphere. The clapping of flip-flops against the pavement sounded from behind me, as I turned around to see Saitama, screaming at a mosquito with a can of bug spray in his hands.

"Oh, hey, Saitama," I greet, "why are you outside?"

"There was a mosquito."

No shit Sherlock...

I point up at the black sphere of mosquitoes. "You don't say?"

His jaw dropped as we all watched more and more mosquitoes swarm her.

"Both of you, evacuate now," Cyborg orders. "That swarm is conscious, and if it sees you moving it will attack."

"Seriously?" Saitama asks, paling noticeably. "That's bad, I should probably go-"

An eerie laugh sounds from the swarm as I face palm. "Ugh, I didn't want to deal with this on my day off from work..."

The swarm soon descends upon us, as I squat down and cover my face. I put a little electricity on the boundary of my skin to prevent the bugs from coming too close, and I was about to expand the field of electricity when something got very...hot.

And by that, I mean the swarm set on fire and exploded.

As the smoke cleared, I still felt a large ringing in my ears, as the blonde said something that I couldn't discern. Standing up fully, I noticed my civilian clothes had been burned away to reveal my hero costume.

I must've not noticed myself put it on this morning...damn my habits! Well, at least I wasn't naked.

Glancing over, I noticed that Saitama was completely naked.

Why did the egg have such a rocking body?! Looking straight forward and ignoring Saitama's nakedness, I hear Saitama let out a "huh?"

"Gina! Why aren't you naked?!"

"What?! That's such a weird question to ask!" I retort, looking him in the eyes to avoid looking at his lower extremities.

"What's that weird outfit you're wearing?!"

"You both aren't dead?" The cyborg asks, turning to us in amazement.

"Well, thanks to you, since you made them completely bug out."

Damn it, Saitama, that pun was horrible.

"Get it? Bug-out-"

"Idiots!" A voice cackles, interrupting Saitama as the mosquito lady flutters back down, now completely red. "I don't need the tiny ones! I have so much power now!"

To prove her point, she turned around and sliced a building in half, as my jaw dropped.

"That was the Dairy Queen!" I scream, "I was going there later!"

She nosedives at the cyborg, kicking him up in the air as she slices at his metallic body. He began to fall back down, center glowing a bright blue.

Jumping up, I grabbed the cyborg in my chest just as Saitama smacked the mosquito lady, splattering blood all over the building. I felt my jaw drop as I rolled to a stop, setting the cyborg down gently.

"Mosquitoes suck," Saitama jokes, bald head shining victoriously.

"Get some clothes, Saitama, instead of making jokes!" I yell at him, as he nods. "'Kay."

But, why was Saitama so powerful?! He looked like an egg, acted like a doofus, but he seemed to have the power that I did as well.

Is he a demi-god, too?

Looking at the cyborg, I stood up, backing away as I reached for my phone in my pocket, only to find it wasn't there.

Damn it, I'll have to ask HQ for a new one!

"Bald man! Before you go, what is your name?" The cyborg asks as Saitama began to walk away.

"Oh, it's Saitama."

The cyborg sweat dropped. "It sounded to bland, I just thought it was a nickname the girl gave you."

Saitama frowned lightly as I laughed.

"Regardless, I want to be your disciple."

"Oh, okay...wait, what?" Saitama turns his head back to the crumpled cyborg.

"I would like to be your disciple!"

And in the blink of an eye, Saitama dashed off. Chuckling, I squatted back down by the cyborg.

"Hey, cyborg dude, want a ride home?" I ask, as he turns to me.

"Leave me here, my doctor will be here soon."

"Dude, that's literally so irresponsible. I'm taking you to my place," I begin, picking up his arm up.

"You cannot understand! I am at least double the weight of the average male-"

I placed him on one shoulder, giving his back a reassuring pat. "You can call your mom on the landline when we get to my house. Do cyborgs drink tea?" I ask as I begin to walk home.

"Only good tea."

"At least you still have your wits intact."

Upon arriving home, I set the cyborg down on the couch.

"I'm Gina," I shout out to him as I run into the spare room, grabbing my old tools.

"Genos."

"Interesting name," I respond, scuttling back into the room.

"Don't you dare-"

"I'm literally an electrician," I interrupt, "and I know how to fix appliances since my family is very frugal. Now, I'm going to call your mom-"

"My family is dead."

"Well, that sucks. I'm sorry for your loss," I respond, standing up to my full height as I head to the landline. "Now, what's the number?"

"XXX-XXX-XXXX."

I punched in the numbers, as the line rang for a few moments.

"Doctor Kuseno speaking, how may I help."

"Hi, your kid, Genos, is a bit injured right now. Can you come pick him up at my apartment? I live in Z-City at XXX."

"Of course, I'll be over right away."

Doctor Kuseno hung up as I turned over to Genos. The first thing I did was shift the metal plates so his legs were at least facing the right way. Then, I gave him a new black shirt that wasn't ripped, but I was dismayed to find that no jeans fit him.

After Doctor Kuseno arrived, he took away Genos and thanked me for helping out a bit, then the two left.

Damn it! I forgot to give Genos some tea!

And after a long day (without any Dairy Queen), I fell asleep; and woke up to get a call from HQ on my landline. I had been credited with the defeat of the mosquito lady, and had been given a million yen as compensation.

The first thing I did that morning was take a train down to HQ and got a new phone. Then, at lunch, I went back to Z-City, beating up a minor criminal on the train. Around 3:00, I went to the bank and deposited the check, withdrawing half a million yen.

And then, I found myself upon Saitama's door. He lived in a crummy side of Z-City, where not a lot of people, if any, lived.

I knocked once, and heard the pounding of feet racing towards the door. Saitama creaked it open, poking his head through.

"Save me from Genos' endless jabbering," Saitama pleaded, looking defeated. I chuckled, pushing through the door as I entered Saitama's small, messy, cluttered home.

"I brought you something," I state, withdrawing an envelope and passing it to Saitama as he examined it.

"What's this?"

"I gave you half the commission I earned from work the other day."

Saitama opened the envelope as his jaw dropped. "What? Why are you giving this to me?!"

"You deserved it. Yesterday was my day off, and I didn't do anything against the mosquito lady," I shrug, as his face becomes serious.

"Thank you."

Woah! The serious face is kind of freaky! And also, kind of attractive, but Death is better, anyway.

Wait...why is he wearing a costume?!

"Why are you wearing a hero costume?" I ask, looking at his weird banana-yellow outfit.

"I'm a hero...for fun," he declares, as I arch a brow. That isn't too strange, since Saitama is weirdly powerful, but the costume is strange.

"He is also my sensei!"

"Eh?"

Glancing over, I see Genos sitting at the table, looking up at me.

"I'd like to thank you for calling Dr. Kuseno yesterday for me."

"It was no problem, it's what anyone would have done."

Genos' eyes flashed a yellow, as he squatted by the door. "An object is approaching at a high velocity...it is here!"

"Wha-" I begin, as a large, green grasshopper breaks through the door.

"My name is-" it screeches, as Saitama quickly punches its' head off, splattering green gloop all over the wall.

"Pay for my wall," Saitama tells the grasshopper as I chuckle nervously.

"Your apartment is messy enough already, now you have green goop everywhere. Shouldn't you have punched it outside so it falls to its death?"

"Oh."

"There are two others outside," Genos notes as I sigh.

"Today's not my day off, and I've already gone through this once..."

"Huh?" Saitama asks as I look up.

"You haven't figured it out?" I ask, pushing up my glasses. "I'm-"

"Sensei, let me take care of them!" Genos jumps out the opening in the wall, as Saitama disappears after him. Shrugging, I jump out as well, interested in what's going to occur.

Saitama begins complaining as a pair of furry claws drag Saitama through the earth, leaving his head poking out.

He looks even more like an egg, now!

"I feel like a bamboo shoot," Saitama notes as I begin laughing.

Lightning strikes behind us as I turn around, feeling excitement coursing through me. Oh, I love dramatic entrances!

Ugh, it's just a stupid looking cyborg.

"You are not the target," the cyborg notes, looking at Genos and I. "You are merely in the way!"

It jumped up, raising it's fist at Genos and I. Genos jumped up and kicked it, but was blown back.

I look up at the robot, giving it a deep frown. "You're awfully slow," I grumble, "all flash and no show."

"What-"

I jump up, delivering a swift kick to the chest as the armour exploded into metal fragments, sending the body inside, a large gorilla, flying back hundreds of feet.

Loud footsteps sound from behind me, as I see a large lion stand over Saitama.

"Seems you're in a tight situation."

The lion begins to rant as a small weasel pops out of the ground. Saitama yawns, as the lion places two claws by his eyes, threatening Saitama. Saitama stood up from the hole, facing the lion.

"If you want to apologize, now's your chance, since you guys smashed my wall."

The lion rose, obviously agitated.

"Behold true power!" The lion roars, as Saitama begins to shake his belt of dirt.

"Aww, you got dirt in my belt."

"Are you even listening?!" the lion asks as Saitama rolls his eyes. "One minute."

Saitama continued dusting his belt, until he looked up at the large lion. "I'm done, now."

"Now, behold the true power of the Beast King!"

Ugh, they're talking in third person.

The lion slashed at Saitama, causing homes to collapse as I look at the weird weasel thing.

"Hey, you," I shout, as it looks at me, claws bared.

"What?!" It screeches back, as I take a running start at it. It begins to dig underground, but I grab it by the scruff of the neck and kick it far away.

It's probably dead, but weasel meat is probably disgusting, anyway.

Glancing over, I watch the lion give a full-scale attack on Saitama.

"Saitama! Don't completely obliterate them!" I shout, "I heard lion meet is really tasty!"

"Eh?" The Beast asks, as Saitama punches it's skull, completely decapitating the Lion.

"Nice!" I shout, "We can make some steaks, burgers, and sausages with that."

"That sounds weird." Saitama deadpans as I shrug, stepping forward.

"Meat is meat, Saitama, and food is food." Hauling the lion over my shoulder as Saitama and Genos walked over to the monkey-cyborg, they interrogated it as I began to walk away.

Wait, I can't store this in my apartment!

"Saitama! I'm keeping the dead lion in your apartment!" I shout out as Saitama gives me a grossed-out expression.

"No way! That's nasty!"

"I can't bring a giant dead lion to my apartment! The meat will go to waste!"

"Then just cure it here, and get rid of the other stuff, then take home the products." Saitama frowns, pointing around the area. "It doesn't seem like anyone will want to live here for a while."

"Fine," I drawl out, slumping the decapitated lion against a wall. "I'll be back with my cooking tools."

And that night, we made lion burgers. Not too bad, actually. With everything else, I even made some lion jerky.

But once again, I earned a commission from defeating those villains, though I did nothing. However, I'm keeping the money this time, since I gave Saitama and Genos the once-in-a-life time chance to eat lion burgers.

* * *

 **February 1st**

"You want me to greet the new heroes after they pass?" I ask, talking to Kim-Chi over the phone. "Why?"

"Because they'll look up to you, since you're a S-Class hero," Kim-Chi responds, giving an exasperated sigh.

"I'm not the best at inspirational speeches," I feel my face flush, remembering a public speaking project I did in ninth grade.

Never again.

"And why not? Tomorrow would be a perfect day!"

"Because I have an optometrist appointment," I remind her. "That's why I filed for a day off. I can't go fighting crime and welcoming new kids when I can't see my own fingers."

"Ugh, fine. We'll have to ask Sneck, then."

"Ew, that freak?" I respond, letting out a low chuckle. "He has a fetish for breaking new heroes."

"Exactly why we want you to come-"

"I'm sorry, but I can't. Later, Kim-Chi!" I quickly hang up, pocketing my phone. Jogging over to Saitama, who waited on the bench, I gave him a little wave.

"You ready to start running?" I ask, as he nods, standing up and cracking his back. We fall into a nice jog, as he looks over at me.

"Who was on the phone with you?" He asks, as I groan.

"One of my superiors, in a way. She feels as if she has to micro-manage my appearances in public, since I refuse to do lots of public appearances for work," I answer, feeling my brows furrow. I agreed to do this whole 'hero' thing so I wouldn't die a few years back, but now I kind of wish I died so I wouldn't have to deal with Kim-Chi so much.

Galas, speakings, workshops, charity auctions, you name it. This was just a short list of all the things that Kim-Chi attempted to coerce me into doing.

It'll only be so long until I actually have to attend one.

"Anyway, what's going on with you?" I ask, "Any new plans?"

"Oh, Genos and I are going to apply to be official heroes tomorrow," Saitama states, as his face suddenly darkens. "Apparently, we are considered weirdos if we don't act with a license."

I chuckle. "Ah, I remember those days. Anything else?"

"There's a new TV show about aquatic life on tomorrow at 7:00 AM, so I taped it for later."

"Cool."

* * *

Saitama and I both missed our daily jog together that day, as I ran off to the optometrist. My prescription hadn't changed one bit, so I was stuck with my big glasses.

"You can still purchase a new pair," the optometrist stated, looking at my glasses with slight disgust.

"I don't need to," I respond. "These frames are still in good shape."

"Alright, then. Who's driving you home?" He asks, as I shake my head.

"No one."

"How did you get here?" He asks, a concerned expression on his blurry face.

"I ran."

"You're going to run straight into traffic, then." He grumbles, picking up my phone. "Who should I call to pick you up?"

Ugh, I can't get my usual taxi driver today because he's visiting family in A-City!

"Anyone," I respond, as he randomly picks one, placing the phone to his ear.

"Hello? Hi, this is Gina's optometrist...no, she didn't die. Yes, she's fine, her eyes are just extremely dilated right now, and she's in no state to be driving-"

"Running," I correct, as the optometrist gives me a wary look. "Running home," he corrects himself, pausing as the other person begins to talk.

"Yes, of course. Thank you." The optometrist set down the phone, giving me a smile.

"A person with a car should be here soon."

"Thank god," I sighed in relief, as the optometrist gave me a toothy grin.

"How do you have so many famous heroes in your contacts?" He asks, as I deadpan. Of course, not even my optometrist realizes I'm Scarlet.

"It's because-"

"Aw, never mind, seems like that's private information disclosers you can't reveal." He face palms, giving me a sad look. "Sorry."

He ushered me to the waiting room, passing me a pair of strong sunglasses. The door opened, and in came a certain blue-haired individual. The office ladies swooned as I deadpan.

Of course my optometrist would call Amai, especially on the day I reject a public appearance; which Amai rags on me about more than Kim-Chi. Amai gives me a charming smile, holding out a hand for me to stand up with.

"Hello, Scarlet," he greets as I stand up on my own.

"It's Gina, and you know that well enough," I grumble as he chuckles, champagne eyes flickering over my dark shades.

"Well, let's get you out of here," he smiles, turning back and giving a wave to the office.

"Bye, everyone!"

"Bye, Amai Mask~" the office ladies coo back as I open the door, stepping out as Amai follows closely behind. Amai leads me to a black limo, opening the door for me as I swiftly get in, scooching far as possible from Amai.

"No need to be strangers," he responds as I take off the dark shades. The limo was dark enough, anyway.

"Every time I see you, I'm reminded of how you almost killed me." I point at the barely visible white line on my neck, "In case you forgot."

"Well, it's almost faded by now, so hopefully such feelings will fade, too." He grins a sparkling white smile, and I roll my eyes.

"What do you want."

"What do you mean? I did this from the goodness of my heart-"

"You want something in return, don't you," I glare at him as he chuckles.

"As the second-highest hero, you're hardly seen in public. And based off the way you dress, that's probably a good thing, as well-"

"Hey! No need to be rude."

"It's the truth," he responds, pulling out his phone and typing away at it. "You know how much I dislike some interviews, but recently the largest fan base of the Hero Association, compiled of more than 25,000 official members nation-wide, has been begging for an interview session of all S-Rank, and some A-Rank heroes."

"And why should I comply?" I respond, as Amai grins.

"Because they won't be primarily focusing on you for the interview. There's a new S-Rank hero," he states as my eyes widen.

"No way! Who is it?" I ask as he holds up his phone. Squinting at the picture, I saw it was a file with a small square image of a familiar cyborg tucked in the corner.

"Oh, it's Genos! I know him," I respond as Amai nods. "He has been moved up to S-Rank immediately after annihilating the House of Evolution."

"Good for him! What about Saitama?" I ask as Amai's face wrinkles in disgust. "That bald, average looking man? He's in C-class."

"Oh." My face falls at this. I seriously believe that Saitama is more powerful than Genos with his raw strength, but the Hero Association probably doesn't know this.

"You're not telling me something...which A-class heroes have agreed to appear?" I ask, as his lip twitches into a smile.

"Me, obviously, some of Atomic Samurai's followers," he begins as I begin to internally laugh. Atomic Samurai didn't like me that much after I kicked his ass, and henceforth neither did his followers, "Iaian, Stinger, Lightning Max, Smile Man, and Death Gatling."

My face fell into a frown at the mention of the last name. "I'm absolutely not going."

"He's not that bad-"

"He was outside my apartment building three nights in a row, asking me to come back," I groan, "and he's so clingy! One of the main reasons I changed apartments was because of him. He also has this whole 'S-ranks are worshiped too much!' ideal in his head now."

About a week after Death left me completely alone, I got wasted for a bit and hooked up with this man. I was attracted to his ruggedness, maybe a bit because he resembled Dean, but that's not the only reason. When he wanted to become serious after a few rendezvous, I completely broke it off with him, and this was around the time I was applying to S-class. He got all mopey, and when I saw a chance when I could finally move out of the apartment I did.

All to avoid him. I've got to thank god that the optometrist called Amai rather than Death Gatling...

"Besides, who's going to protect the public during that time?" I ask as Amai sighs. "Obviously the other heroes."

"And why should I do it? It's not worth my time!" I point out as he smirks.

"If you do this, HQ won't nag you about anything minor until December, with the only major event being a possible press conference in case things head south."

I arch my brow, leaning back in my chair.

"As well as half of your annual pay check added."

My eyes widened as I looked at a smirking Amai. With that money, I could purchase my family and Penny's family a bigger and better house on a different island! I don't want them on this continent with all these monster attacks, no, that's far too dangerous. But maybe with this money, I can make it up to them for my inactivity with them.

I sigh, giving him a nod. "Fine, I'll do it. When is it?"

"The 16th of February in R-City. Shall I pick you up in the morning around 6:00? The event begins around 9:00, so we should be there a hour or so early."

"No, I'll see if Tatsumaki wishes to carpool."

"Scarlet, we're all carpooling there. Well, S-class and I, are. You are plenty welcomed to join," he gives me a tight lipped smile as I frown.

"Whatever." He pulls up to my apartment complex as I hop out, glaring at him.

"Thanks for the ride, but no thanks for your rude attitude."

"You're welcome," he grins, closing the door as the limo speeds off. Frowning, I turn around and enter my apartment complex.

What have I gotten myself into?

Frowning, I entered my house, setting the house keys in a bowl as I dimmed the lights. Tater Tot padded up to me, pressing their furry body against my leg. Smiling softly, I squat down by it and pat Tater Tot on the back.

What if I never had gotten into this mess? What if I was on a later flight, and ended up just coming over to the Main Continent like a normal person does. I'd be graduating college this year, and would be going to medical school.

I'd have a normal life, but yet Dean wouldn't be in it. Glancing at my wrist, a variety of white, faded lines litter it, reminding me of the constant choice I make.

Yes, I could say screw everything and go off the grid, never to lay a finger on a monster again. But, I do this for multiple reasons.

The smallest reason is my word to Zeus. I would never go back on it, and I promised to slay monsters until I finally defeat Hades, or until he kills me.

The second is that I have a promise to Hades, to try to fight him as soon as possible.

I just hope I don't die.

The third is Dean...my heart swells with pride knowing that he cares for me and thinks I am strong enough to help humanity.

My heart also surges with emotions of love, but that is another story.

Mentally counting the amount of scars, I wince at the sheer number that doesn't fit on both hands. If I was a normal human, I'd be long dead, and put into a ward.

(If you are reading this and struggle with depression, anxiety and thoughts of suicide please get help. Things get better.).

I'm a mess right now, I wouldn't want Dean to see me like this.

I head to bed for the night, eyelids heavy and sinking the moment my head hits the pillow.


	6. WOAH

Listen up, readers.

This may not apply to most of you, but this does occur. I write this fanfiction for _fun_ , yet all I seem is to be receiving hate. I am getting PMs pointing out inaccuracies, or flaws, or telling me to delete my story.

A concept: if you don't like it, _don't read it._

This is not a work of fiction based off real life events where it needs to be accurate and to the point.

It's fan fiction. And on any other story I've written for the past two years, I've never had this problem before.

For the most part, I love reading everyone's comments; they make me really happy. But when I have to delete 10+ comments on the story telling me to delete the story, fuck off and kill myself, then things get messy.

To all those who wish to continue reading, thank you for your love and support. I purposefully constructed the story of Gina to flow the way it does.

I must note, she is a *Mary Sue* archetype on a slight angle. Yes, she's overpowered, and seems to have everything going swell in her life. Yet, she cannot have everything she wants, and thus must sacrifice herself; something a Mary Sue would do.

And this story, as I must note, is a OPM *OC* fanfiction. This means that it'll be primarily following Gina. An arc is building up that's not in the OPM storyline, don't worry, but it takes careful planning and writing.

Thanks,

TheMangoYeti


	7. Chapter 6

"I swear to gods, I might pull a 2007 Britney Spears and shave my head." I lean back into my headboard, stroking Tater Tots on my lap. My phone sat on speaker mode on my dresser, as a light laugh emitted on the other line.

"Your job as an electrician shouldn't be _too_ stressful," my mom responds over the line as I sighed, looking down in shame.

"Yeah, that." I felt horrible lying, but it had to be done. I didn't want my parents to be even more worried about me, especially because my father felt insanely guilty about putting me on that airplane.

"It'd be great if you can visit home sometime," my mom continues in English. "You know how hard it would be for us to all obtain the access to fly over and see you."

"I don't trust airplanes, for the most part, but also, I can't take time off work," I pinch the bridge of my nose.

"Penny might come over soon, why don't you come with her?" My mom asks as I shake my head.

"I have a conference for work tomorrow," I answer, picking my phone back up as I look at the calendar.

"Ooh, that's exciting. Oh, your brother wants to talk to you and tell you something exciting. Love you, honey!"

"Bye, mom," I respond, scrolling through my phone.

"Gina-" my brother cackles as I roll my eyes.

"Saburo, what do you want." The little bastard had turned 18 this year, and was supposedly over six feet now, and was no longer the scrawny boy of 13 he had been when I left.

"I'm going to Z-City college, so I can see you whenever-"

"What?" I ask, sitting up abruptly as the cat hopped off my lap.

"I'm at the airport right now," my brother states, "with mom and dad. Can you come pick me up tomorrow at Q-City's airport?"

Of course, it's like my parents to 'surprise' me like this, and Saburo's dickish nature didn't help with that.

"Burro! You can't just tell me these things in the spur of the moment," I shout at him, face palming. "I have work tomorrow."

"If I told mom and dad that you didn't pick me up, they're going to be disappointed, don't you think?" He responds as I groan.

"Fine, I'll pick you up. What time will you be arriving?"

"Four in the morning. Thanks, big sis!" He hangs up quickly before I get the chance to scream at him.

Four?! I can't believe him! That little runt! I'm supposed to carpool to that stupid conference in the morning! I pull out my contacts, sending Amai a quick text that I'll be driving to the conference I'll have to use the car that Penny insisted I needed to buy, even though she uses it more than I do. I haven't used it since October of last year, since I travel everywhere on foot, and gas prices aren't cheap in this damn city.

Q-City is an hour drive, and if I was to go back home and drop Saburo off, then I'd have to do the hour and thirty minute drive to R-City...

Damn it! I'll have to my brother to R-City with me!

* * *

I pull myself up from the bed, checking my phone.

 _2:00 AM_

Well, this is great. Standing up and cracking my bones, I grab a plain pair of black leggings from my dresser and a grey turtleneck sweater. Throwing my hair into a bun, I slip on my glasses and sneakers, grabbing my purse (with my costume in it, of course) and my keys.

I quickly feed Tater Tots, before leaving the apartment as I head down to the garage, getting in the small Buggy I had purchased. It was from over 2 decades ago, and came at the Low-Low price of 165,000 yen, or about 1,500 dollars. A pretty good deal, if you ask me. Turning on the car, it shifts to a jazz radio station as I drive off towards Q-City.

At 3:38, I pull into the airport and head to the coffee shop outside the terminals. Pulling out my phone, I tell my brother to meet me at the coffee shop.

I scroll through my phone endlessly, sipping on some apple cider while I eat some lemon bread. The hot apple cider steamed up my glasses, so I removed them, rubbing the glasses so I could see. Putting back on my glasses, I look at the calendar as I sweat drop.

Due to me never posting on social media, compared to other A and S list heroes, Amai Mask set up a calendar date for when I need to post on FlipBack. Most of the time, I post a photo of whatever I'm eating or of a cool scenery, but if I post a photo with over 100,000 likes I don't have to post for the rest of the month. If I didn't meet the criteria, I'd have to do a brand deal, which I'm definitely _not_ going to do.

Taking a quick picture of my cup, I go to the caption, trying to think of a good caption.

 _'Early morning coffee?'_

 _How about just a coffee emoji?_

"Yo," a voice says from behind me, as I whirl to face Saburo.

He had certainly grown over the past 5 years, now towering over my small height. He had dark red hair curled stylishly over one eye, and he wore a black band shirt with dark grey pants. Some fancy adidas shoes coated his feet, flashing a golden logo.

Damn it, he's a fuck boy into street wear. Now, I've got the perfect caption: _'Woke up at 2 AM to pick my fuck boy brother up from the airport.'_

"What's up, little sis?" He asks as I stand up, standing at his shoulders.

"It's big sis to you," I point out. "I'm just shorter."

"Like I said, _little_ sis," he playfully sticks his tongue out.

"Whatever, let's get going," I grumble, waving goodbye to the coffee-shop boy as I trudge to the car.

"So, when we get to Z-City-"

"Oh, burro, you're stuck with me for the day in R-City, since you didn't let me know earlier that you were coming."

"What?" He asks, surprised at the idea that I could already have made plans.

"You made me get up at 2:00 in the morning to come get you," I retort, "and drive an hour away to come pick you up. You're coming with me today."

"Electricians are so boring, though," he drawls out as a smirk crosses my lips. I open the back of my car as he places his luggage in there.

"Then wait in the car, just know that I'm not turning the heat on. It wastes gas."

"What-"

I sit down in the car, plugging my phone into the aux chord, playing some jazz again. Saburo sits down, adjusting his seat in the car.

"This isn't too bad," I mutter, turning onto FlipBack. Deleting my caption, I retype it.

"Absolutely...*love*...getting up...at 4 AM...for coffee..." I mutter to myself, feeling Saburo lean over in the car to peer over my shoulder.

"Why are you posting on your lame FlipBack at 4:00 in the morning? Not like you have friends to post for," my brother grumbles as I roll my eyes.

"I have to post for my followers on schedule. Nothing more, nothing less." I back out of the parking space, driving off towards R-City.

"But why is an electrician so popular?" He asks as I groan.

Why is he such an annoying twirp?

"You'll figure out," I respond. "And now that you live in The Main Continent, you know about the monsters, right?"

"Of course, we just never have to deal with them back on the island," Buro huffs out as I roll my eyes.

"They're a serious nuisance here. I see about 3-8 every day back in Z-City, and Z-City is a hot spot for them. You'll have to be extremely careful in Z-City, so if I were you, I'd take some basic self defense classes."

"Why?" He asks as I laugh.

"Heroes aren't always on time in urban cities, due to their largeness and traffic. Sometimes, a hero can't prevent a casualty. They're bound to happen, but I don't want you to be in that percentage of victims." I turn on my blinker, shifting over to the left lane.

"You're so nice, you care," he laughs out as I groan.

"Listen, burro, I'm not going to be your chauffeur in Z-City, since I never use my car."

"Why?!"

"Because I run everywhere, it saves on gas. So, when I drive back to Z-City, you're signing up for drivers ed and will be purchasing your own car."

"You run everywhere? That sounds funny, you were never the athletic type," he laughs to himself, imagining me running around with a toolbox.

"Shut it."

We continued driving in silence, until I glared over at him. "Why did you want to go to Z-City college, anyway?"

"Because I wanted more opportunities," he answers. "Hawai'i doesn't have those, anymore. Scientists are predicting monsters might begin popping up there, so if I'm here with you, it'll be easier to bring Mom and Dad over."

"That bastard better not," I grumble under my breath, thinking of Hades. The islands shouldn't be involved in this shit show of a mess.

"What?" My brother asks as I shake my head. "Nothing. Though I'd rather Mom and Dad not come over here due to the monster problem. However, if they have to come over, I can easily secure them a Visa from the government."

"Do you fix up electronics for high rank government officials?" he asks as we came to a traffic stop. A train began to ramble past the tracks, moving at the slowest speed possible.

"I suppose some owe me favors- DAMN IT, THESE TRAINS ARE SO SLOW!" I complain mid-sentence, banging my head against the steering wheel, emitting a long honk.

"Ahaha!" A figure emerged on the top of the train, clambering to the top as the train pulls to a halt. They seemed to be made of rusted metal, gears attached to parts of their bodies. "I am Train Boy! I stop traffic and rob everyone! If you don't give your money, then you will be killed!" It pipes out, placing its arms on their hips. For some reason, they were wearing a conductor's outfit, but they didn't bother buttoning it up.

"What is he saying?" My brother asks, not being able to hear with the windows up. I take off my glasses, putting them in a cup holder.

"Something about us being robbed?" I ask, groaning. Looking towards Saburo, I gesture towards the villain. "See, this is the kind of idiocy we have to deal with on the Main Continent. For gods' sake, who robs people at 5 in the morning?!"

He shrugs, as I roll my eyes and open up the car door, stepping out.

"Hey! What are you doing?!" Burro shrieks as I press down the honked horn once more. Looking back behind me, I noticed a long line of cars had begun to fill up.

Damn it, I don't want to deal with this so early in the morning.

"What are you doing?!" Train Boy yells out as I cross my arms.

"I have a meeting to get to! If I'm late, I'll get scolded and probably will have to do some publicity stunt later! Move aside!" I shout back as Train Boy guffaws.

"I am robbing you, imbeciles! This train will not be moved until you all pay up!"

"Who robs a train at 5:00 in the morning?!"

"I do! Don't judge!" He shouts back, steam rising from their ears.

"Ugh, I don't get a break, do I?" I muse, as I began running towards the train. Jumping up, I do a 360 in air, before landing a solid blow to the chest. Landing on top of the train as Train Boy cranes their neck towards me, they look at the large dent that had formed in their chest.

Oh, it wasn't a one shot kill? Maybe since it's in the morning, I'm a bit _rusty_.

Heh, pun intended.

Then, his metal began to shatter, as he collapsed into a pile of rust-dust on top of the train. The clothes were shredded as well, blowing away with the wind.

Nevermind.

Dully kicking the rust pile, I hop down to the cab, entering the train. The conductor was sitting there, tied up and naked, save for their underpants.

"Help!" he shouts into the cloth wrapped around his face, as I lean forward and untie him.

"Uh, hey, sorry dude about your clothes, but the Train Villain took them."

He grins, pulling the cloth away from his face.

"Thank you!" He responds. "I shall start moving this train right away! However, I may need a push start, since the villain tampered with the tracks and wheels."

"Sure."

I sigh. Whatever moves the car faster, I suppose.

Getting out of the train, I walked to the tail end of the train. Walking about 20 feet away from it, I turned around, putting my hands out in front of me.

I take a running start towards the train, and the moment my hands come in contact with the train I emit a small shock with my hands, pushing the train ahead a hundred feet. Continuing to run with my hands attached to it, I built up more and more speed until I finally let go, and the train is on its way out of the area.

Wiping a bit of sweat from my forehead, I clamber back into the car, sitting next to my shocked brother. Looking at him, I arch a brow.

"What?"

I put back on my glasses as my brother blinks rapidly, rubbing his eyes.

"Did you just kill a man and push a train?!" He shrieks as I begin driving over the train tracks.

"It wasn't a man, it was a hollow shell of a human. A monster."

"You still killed something!"

"Would you have rather been killed or robbed?" I retort as my brother shakes his head.

"But-"

"It's a kill or be killed continent, Burro," I admit, looking down at my car wheel as memories from training come back. "You become numb to it after a while."

"This isn't the first time?!"

"I wish it was," I quietly respond.

"That's not the only thing! Where did you get that strength from?!"

"I trained."

"What?! How does training automatically make you be able to push trains?!" He asks, pushing his hair back from his face, as if the hair falling in front of his eyes obscured this whole situation.

"Well, do you work out?"

"Not really-"

"Then you don't know if working out can give you the ability to push trains."

"I-"

I smirk at my brother's confusion as we continue to drive.

"Why did you do it and not call for a hero?" He asks as I shrug.

"Too lazy, besides, most of them are sleeping right now. Someone would wind up dead before they arrive."

"But-"

"If you can't handle these situations, then go back home."

I turn up the music, cutting him off so he no longer can talk.

We got to the convention hall around 6:00 due to the Train Boy delay, as I unlock the car, hopping out.

"I'm going to run to the coffee shop a few blocks from here."

"Why don't you drive?" He asks, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Parking is going to suck later," I grumble, rolling up my sleeves as I cross my bag over my chest. "If you want food, then catch up."

Turning from my idiotic brother, I begin jogging away.

"Hey! Wait up!" my brother shouts from behind me. "These aren't running shoes!"

"Tennis shoes _are_ running shoes! Why purchase them if not for running?"

"To look cool!"

* * *

"Ah, I see you finally decided to arrive." I look over the top of the menu to see my brother stumble into the cafe, breathing heavily.

"You suck-" he breathes out as I chuckle. I order my food, glancing over at him as he orders some pancakes.

When our food comes, I dig into my waffles as we eat in silence for the next hour. Around 7:00, we walk back over to the convention center, arriving 15 minutes or so later.

"What am I supposed to do for the rest of the day?" He asks as I glance around the parking lot that has already filled up quite a bit.

"Wander around. I don't care. You can stay in the convention or go around the town. Text me at the end of the day so I can take you home," I instruct, entering the large convention hall. Small shops had already filled the large room as their owners began to set up.

Damn it, was this some sort of Comic-Con for the hero fans?!

Heading to the back door, I glance over my shoulder and see my brother following me.

"What are you doing."

"Wandering around," he whistles out as I face palm.

"Just stay with me for a few minutes, then go."

We went to the back room where hundreds of workers buzzed around, dragging props, testing microphones, and setting up the stage that over sat on the entire convention hall.

"Scarlet!" A woman dressed in black came up to me, looking me up and down. "You are needed in hair and makeup right now."

"What? This isn't some performance-" I start as she grabs me by the hand, beginning to drag me off.

"Tell your assistant that he's no longer needed." My brother's jaw dropped as I look back at him, motioning him to shoo off. He frowns, turning around and stalking out the back room.

Ha! Assistant.

"Why do I need makeup anyway?" I ask as she forces me to sit in a chair.

"Amai says you'll be washed out if you don't use makeup," she responds, swooning at the idea of Amai. I groan internally as makeup and hair comes. They powder my face, applying mascara and lipstick and other makeup things that I'd never dream of using. Then, someone straightened my hair, making it look like a dome.

"Your hair...it's so thick!" A woman screeches as I deadpan. This is why I leave it curly.

"Don't worry about it," I respond, taking the hair band they removed from my hair. "I'll just braid it."

"But-"

"It's my hair, isn't it?" I ask, beginning to feel irked. Damn it, why would I ever agree to showing up?

Oh yeah, _Amai_.

She sighs as she steps back. "Alright, alright. You can braid it."

"Thank you," I nod back, taking some strands as I begin to french braid my hair. I finally finish, tying it back with the hairband I used this morning.

Standing up, the lady looks me up and down. "And where is your costume?" She asks, as I point towards my bag. "In there, should I put it on?"

"The others are, but it's optional. However, based on your current appearance, I'd put it on."

Rude! But, I must say, I'm a bit rude as well, but still! This does not excuse this woman's behavior! Grumbling to myself, I slip into the costume, pulling up the boots. Exiting the dressing room, I scan for other heroes, seeing a familiar blue-haired hero. Walking over, I tap him on the shoulder as he whirls around.

"Scarlet, great to see you-" he charms as I hold up my hand to stop him.

"How long do I have to stay for?" I ask. "I have a sudden issue on my hand that'll need to be taken care of as soon as possible."

"And what is that? A hero-thing?" Amai responds as I shake my head.

"Worse, I had to bring my brother here..." I grumble as Amai barks out a laugh. "I am sure he is as charming as you are."

"Shut your trap, Amai," I retort. "He's not a super."

"Oh, so you're the only one in your family?" He arches a brow, a smirk dawning on his face. "Interesting."

"Don't try getting him involved, he's a dumbass and would probably die on his first day," I inform. Amai chuckles, checking his phone.

"For the schedule, we have the conference from 9:00-10:30. Of course, we walk in 10 minutes late because it'll probably go 15 minutes over."

"Wonderful, so I can leave after that?" I ask, looking at my phone to see it say 8:46.

"We have to sign autographs and do photos after that from 11:00-12:00 for the Platinum VIPs. Mainly business owners with their kids, pretty mundane stuff. After that, we have a 30 minute lunch break, in which all the A-heroes go to a small area outside for normal people photos, while the Bronze VIPs are to take photos with S-heroes inside for an hour and a half. Then, you're free to walk around, but you'll probably want to head home because if you walk around, people will swarm you; and since you're an antisocial hermit, that wouldn't be for the best."

"Of course, since you're perfect in every way, you'll probably walk around until midnight, just _basking_ in all the attention," I hissed as he flashes a perfectly white smile at me.

"At least I know I'm well received."

I open my mouth to give the best roasting of his life, when a manager approaches us.

"You're both needed to hook up microphones," he says, as I nod, following them as Amai trails behind while he's on his phone.

We get hooked up, before ushered into the lounge, where other S-Class heroes are.

"Where's the A-Class?" I ask, as Amai smirks. "Missing someone?"

"More like celebrating their lack of presence."

"They're in another lounge," he waves off, causing me to arch a brow.

"Are you not an A-Classer as well?"

"I'm practically S-Class, and since I'm so _well-received_ , I'm on the S-board as well."

With that, he waltzes away to go speak to Flashy Flash. Flashy Flash was pretty damn attractive, if I do say so myself, but no one can top Death..

That sentence sounds very weird, but who cares. Scanning the room, I see Genos in the corner just standing there, not doing anything.

Walking over to him, I tap him on the shoulder as he turns around.

"Gina?" He asks as I smile. "Hey, good job on getting into S-Class, buddy."

"Thank you." He nods, squinting at me in confusion.

"Why are you here-"

"Gina!" A voice calls from behind me, as I turn to see Tatsumaki. A grin breaks out in my face as I come face-to-face with my longtime hero friend. Among the heroes, I trusted her the most with personal information. She and her sister, Fubuki, were apart of my small friend group that I held dear to me.

"Tatsumaki! How are you?" I ask as she smirks. "Awesome. So, after this, apparently there's this bar that doesn't ID-"

That was always a problem when we went our drinking. Our IDs were commonly deemed fake, even though we're overage, so we had to make like high school students and hope the bartender lets us drink.

"Why is a kid wanting to drink alcohol?" Genos says from behind me as Tatsumaki's face falls. I look back at Genos, eyes wide.

 _'Apologize now-'_ I mouth, as Tatsumaki inhales.

"You stupid idiot! I'm 27, what do you think I am, 12?!"

"Yes."

" _He means,_ " I seethe through my teeth, turning to Tatsumaki as I low key elbow Genos to stop, slightly denting his arm in the process. "You have youthful skin. Go easy on him, since he's cyborg part of his brain was removed."

"That explains his rude behavior," Tatsumaki scoffs, rolling her eyes as she glares at Genos. "I'll go easy on you this time, since you're new, but don't expect this welcome again."

"Stage time!" A worker announces, walking into the room. With a sigh, I follow everyone in line, feeling like we were in a chain gang to our death.


	8. Chapter 7

wow this plotline is about as gappy as a fishing net but let's go.

i would like to explain some things that have occurred in the storyline.

Q: Why does no one recognize Gina as a hero?

A: I thought'd it'd be funny for it to be a Clark Kent thing. Like "Oh my gosh Clark Kent is wearing glasses, and without them, he's Superman."

Q: Why is Gina such a Mary Sue?

A: Because all my fanfictions are veryyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy Mary Sue-styled. This was the end of an era, trust me. I plan on keeping her Mary Sue, however, to act as a foil character...you'll see why later, of course ;)

Q: WILL SAITAMA BE STRONGER THAN GINA?!

A: The two went through totally different training. In a battle, the two would definitely go at it for a while until a victor is declared. Who? You'll see eventually.

ANYWHO- On with the story.

* * *

"Welcome one and all to the Hero Board!" A hyper announcer beams, enabling cheers from the audience. Their bald head shone in the light, laced with fatty wrinkles and dimples in every crevice; unlike Saitama's smooth bald head. I walk past him before sitting down on the end, next to Tatsumaki. Under the table, she was scrolling through pinterest boards on wine cellars. I tap her foot under the table as I awkwardly wave at everyone, and Tatsumaki raises her free hand in a brief wave. "Per forum standards, if you have a question, go to the microphone and...well, ask it!" The announcer laughs a bit at the dry statement. "Please just keep it as appropriate as possible. Then, we'll get to what you've all been waiting for-" the announcer trails off, and my brows furrow in confusion. What was he talking about?

I glance at Tatsumaki, but she isn't paying any attention. People begin lining up, and I pull out my phone under the table, quickly texting Amai what the announcer meant by that, but Amai wasn't checking his phone.

"Amai! What conditioner do you use?" A girl asks, excitedly clutching hero merch for Amai. Wait, hero merch?! That existed?

Is there any about me? And if there is, _why_?

"Pantene," Amai flips his hair back, a smirk growing on his face. "Keeps it looking shiny and in place, even after the most gruesome fight."

She giggles, before heading back to her seat.

"Metal Bat! Why do you use a bat?" The next person asks, as I glance over at MB, gripping the bat under the table. He really went everywhere with it...

"'Cuz I want to."

The questioner shrugs, before heading back to their seat. After all, what do they expect from a person like MB?

I glance over Tatsumaki's shoulders at the pictures for a good fifteen minutes, until I hear "Scarlet" called from the microphone. I glance up at the speaker at the microphone. "Yes?" I ask, leaning forward into my own mic.

"Do you plan on doing more media appearances in the future? You don't really talk to people when interviewed on the street," a person asks, trailing off. I shrug, already feeling Amai's death glares at the back of my head. "Depends if the right opportunities come along. I'm not the best with interviews and am kind of an introvert, so I'm sorry if I'm disappointing you-" I rub the back of my neck, not knowing how to continue. The interviewer nods, before heading back to their chair and fist bumping their friend. It seemed like there were some other questions for me, which were pretty basic. Soon, the clock struck 10:45, and the forum was over after it ran 15 minutes over; just as Amai expected.

"Thank you for coming to this forum, everyone! If you are staying for our next service, you will have to have your platinum I.D checked, for if not, security will throw you out!" The announcer laughs nicely, tightening his tie nervously as people begin to mill around. I'm led backstage with the others, and I walk up to Tatsumaki.

"The next service is the platinum thing, right?" I ask, causing her to shrug. "Don't know, I'm not included in that part. 'parently I'm not popular enough."

"Huh?" I ask, cocking my head. "I was told it was a business thing, for people who helped sponsor the program."

A smirk grew on her face, before she burst out in laughter. " _That's_ what Amai told you? Oh god, I feel like I shouldn't let you walk in blind; yet, I want you to suffer. Have fun!" She slaps me on the back, before walking over to the bar area.

What in the world did Amai sign me up for?

I glance over at MB, leaning on the wall with his bat next to him. I walk on over, waving lightly. "Yo, MB."

He glances up at me, nodding lightly. "'Sup, Scarlet. What's going on in yer world?"

"Not much. Hey, are you doing the platinum thing at 11:00? Amai said it was a business shoot, but Tatsumaki says it's something else," I tell him, crossing my arms lightly. MB arches a brow, "I was told it was a business thing, too. It's one of my obligatory things, y'know how Amai is."

I nod. MB, Flashy Flash, Zombieman, Watchdog Man and I had no social media presence, until Amai made us a calendar on when to post and when to attend events. Of course, Blast is out there, doing who knows what. Whenever we post on social media, it's always on the same day. We even attend the same smaller-scale events that occur once in a blue moon together, rather than the gaudy events the likes of Kamikaze and Superalloy love to waltz into. We're bound by our introvertedness, and that's what makes us have a good time eating out together. We barely talk, but each other's company is refreshing.

Of course, Watchdog Man doesn't eat at the table, but we appreciate him coming.

"D'you know who else is doing it?" I ask, and he nods towards Genos. "New boy is coming. Heard he's been hero for 'bout a week, but is already quite popular with the fans. Amai laps it up."

"Scarlet," a voice whispers in my ear, and I jump to see Flashy Flash there, not a blonde lock out of place. "You've got to stop doing that," I shudder. "You'll scare me to death."

"You should train more to sense enemies coming," he shrugs. "That's the only way to be the number two hero."

"We all know that in a fight, it'd be hard to determine a winner. The rankings are only for convenience," I sigh. "Anywho, are you doing the platinum thing next?"

"The business thing? Yes. I've been informed that there are some A-rank heroes who are doing it, too."

I nod. "I see-"

The lounge door opens, and in comes Amai. "Alright, all who I told were doing the Platinum event, come with me. And, god, put that out, Zombieman, it'll smell horrific in here."

I glance back at Zombieman smoking a cigarette. He pulls it from his lips, exhaling smoke lowly. "Sure thing, bucko."

With the flick of his fingers, the cigarette was thrown across the room in a quick blur at Amai's face, but Amai caught it with two fingers, quickly crushing it as it dropped to the floor, cut in two and crumpled.

I glance at MB and Flashy Flash, before going out the doors. Genos' metal clacks as he follows behind us, as we enter the hall.

"The other A heroes are already there, so go to the spot where the placecard is," Amai informs, suavely walking down the hallway without glancing back. "Get behind me in order: Scarlet, Metal Bat, Genos, Flashy Flash."

We quickly arrange ourselves, falling into pace again. Amai pulls aside the curtains, and we glance at the audience.

They don't seem very...business-y. More like young teenagers, dressed in either nerdy clothing or hypebeast clothing. I turn back facing forward, as everyone stands up and begins cheering at our entrance. We step back up onto the platform, and I see where our chairs are sitting. Amai heads to the very end, and I see my name tag facing me two chairs down from him. I sit down promptly, turning the card to face the audience.

"Scarlet?"

I glance over, recognizing the voice as my eyes widen in fear. No way...

Over the person's shoulder, Amai looked at me with a smirk, knowing what he had done. I groan, facepalming. The man next to me reached forward to squeeze my hand, but I brushed it aside.

"I don't want anything to deal with you, Death Gatling," I whisper harshly under my breath, keeping an expressionless look on my face so the audience can't tell what's going on.

"Scarlet, we need to talk-"

"Not now." I shake my head. Can this get even worse?

"Welcome to the super-special Platinum session! Without further ado, let's have the heroes read your fanfiction submissions!"

...

What

the

actual

fuck?


	9. Chapter 8

I cross my arms, jittering my foot up and down as Amai began reciting a fanfiction about him as a struggling musician in an un-hero world. And lucky for me, I happened to have a line.

"Why, Mr. Megastar, why can I not be apart of your music company?" Amai bats his eyelashes, looking up from the script.

"Because you are not cut out for this industry, kid," I robotically repeat back. "Try again when you have talent," I squint my eyes at the line. "Laughs evilly-?"

"You're supposed to do that," Death Gatling whispers, and I fight to roll my eyes as I bark out a sharp laugh before setting the script down and nearly groaning. This was the worst thing ever!

Looking back at the script as my scene ends, I flip a few pages ahead, eyes landing on a script titled "Scarlet Apples." Arching a brow, I flip a page in as my face turns bright red.

I was supposed to read this after Amai finishes?! I'm going to die of embarrassment!

Suddenly, the lights cut out and my eyes quickly adjusted to see the people mumbling and beginning to freak out a bit.

"Everyone, stay calm! It's probably a technical difficulty-" Amai shouts out, as light suddenly floods the room-

-from the ceiling being ripped off. In came flying a figure, black robes billowing about them like a knock-off Harry Potter character.

"Aha! A meeting these heroes hath gathered for!" He cackles, feet touching down to the ground. The mysterious figure grins with shark-like teeth that had been grizzled yellow and black gums holding the teeth in. With pitch black eyes matching his hair, it contrasted deeply with tanned, slightly red skin that covered a taut body.

"Who in the hell are you?"

"'Hell!'" The figure giggles. "How peculiar you mentioned it. Yolia is my own name, and the jester of the 7 courts I am."

"You're not invited, I'm afraid it's time to go," Death Gatling growls as he raises his arm to fire. I quickly shove his arm down, shaking my head. "There are still people..." I look at the crowd, quivering in fear. "Go!" I shout as they begin to shout and run from the room.

"I'll go escort them," Zombieman quietly mutters. "If anything comes their way, I'll handle it."

Zombieman slipped into the shadows, as Yolia turns his dastardly wicked gaze towards me.

"Ah, the red hair, just like the flames of heaven's torch itself. You are theirs, are you not?" he cocks his head, greasy hair shifting slightly.

"I have no idea what you mean," I spit back and he grins a wide Cheshire grin. "The game, you know. Patience is something no one has, now. Sent me, they did, to see if you have what it takes."

"And what is that?" I ask, and he laughs evilly. "I love a good game. If you can beat mine, I will admit defeat."

"And if I lose?" I respond and his grin widens. "You die, and this great building is blown to smithereens. And, your friends and you have no choice but to accept."

I glance at the others and MB's brows furrow. "We're going to beat the shit outta yer face," MB threatens, as Genos prepares his arms to blast. Amai took the microphone in hand, quickly throwing it up in the air. Yolia's eyes followed it, as it landed on the ground, before grinning at Amai.

"You missed."

"No, I didn't."

Flashy Flash's hands were around Yolia's neck, quickly snapping it. Yolia's eyes widened in shock before he crumpled on the floor, twitching.

We were quiet for a moment. "Is he...dead?" Death Gatling asks as Yolia stands back up, neck contorting his head to a strange position.

"Aha! Of course not! No normal mortal can defeat me," Yolia grins, pushing Flashy Flash back into the wall with a blast of air. "It was quite a good trick on your part, blue one, but it can't fool a trickster like me."

Flashy Flash crumpled against the wall, slouched against it as he glared up at the demon-threat.

"Now, let the games begin!" Yolia grins, black tongue running over his peeling lips. With the snap of his black fingers, a whirlwind of sand appeared around him, swirling about. I put my sleeve over my mouth, feeling someone suddenly pull me to their chest and putting their arms around my head, cool metal on the back of my neck. The sand's particles lap at my bare hands, though, until it suddenly stops.

Quickly, I pull away from Death Gatling and give him a begrudging "thank you" before I look around.

Where are we?

I was standing in a house with the others, yet, they were all dressed in strange, white clothing.

"What is this place?" Amai Mask asks as we hear the echo of a laughter echo through the tan brick walls of the place.

"Welcome to my playground, where only the worst things happen. You'll have to survive my enemies on the way to the pyramids to even have a chance of fighting me, hee hee!" The voice cackles.

"Hey! What happened to my bat!" MB holds up a caveman club, and Death Gatling gasps, looking at where is gun once was, which was now a normal hand.

"What's happened?" He mutters as Genos squeezes a fleshy bicep. "I'm completely human now..." he comments, now white eyes widening in shock.

Flashy Flash reaches for the golden stars in his head, only to find them gone.

"Based on our clothing, it seems we're in a version of Ancient Egypt," Amai mutters. "The welded metals probably aren't allowed here."

"But my body-" Genos and DG say at the same time before glancing at each other. I put my hands behind my back, making sure the electricity is still there as I feel familiar pricks between my fingers. Thank gods...

"We should try heading in the direction of the pyramids, based on his advice. This will suck, especially since none of us are in pants, and we only have sandals," I point out, gesturing at the white garments we were in.

"We need to get back as soon as possible. Every second we waste is a second missed of beating that guy's ass!" MB barks and Amai sighs. "We have to stay calm. If Yolia can put us here, he's obviously very powerful and can use teleportation powers on others."

"We also don't know how far the pyramids are. We should collect water and food to go," DG adds, pointing at a wooden table, seemingly full of food. "Maybe that'll work?"

"This dude seems like a demon, I wouldn't trust him at all," I grumble, walking towards the fruit bowl. Quickly grabbing an apple, I pull it in half with my hands, revealing maggots squirming around on the inside. Quickly dropping it back in the bowl I take a step away, bile rising in my throat.

"We just had breakfast, we should be fine for now. Let's go," MB adds. It didn't seem like we had any other choice...

Quickly stepping out into the desert sun, we noticed that while there were other houses very similar, there was nobody in the streets. Every door passed by had blood on it, light red and fresh.

"Lamb blood," I mutter, recalling the story of Moses and the Ten Commandments. If that was going on, what was going to happen up ahead?

"I see a river!" Amai announces as we neared the top of a hill. Across the river, seemingly miles away, was a large pyramid, surrounded for miles on end by villages. "We're close. We can follow the river down to the pyramids, as well."

"Let's go quickly, then, for we don't know when night will fall," DG gruffly states, as we wander down the hill. My feet had begun to ache from the horrible sandals, but my mind was focused on the endgame: kick Yolia's ass and get home.

We soon arrive at the river and look across.

"If we find a boat, we could sail down it," Genos suggests, but Flashy Flash shakes his head. "No one is around, where could we even acquire a vessel?"

"This sucks!" MB shouts, smacking his bat against the dusty earth.

"Does this mean we have to walk through it?" I ask, looking at the current. "The current is quite still, we just don't know how steep it is."

"Let me go," Amai suggests. "If I stand decently at the midway point, it'll be safe. I am a strong swimmer, so if I fall, I can make it."

It seems like the rest of us didn't have a choice. We watched as he waded into the water, and walked near the center, where it came up to his waist. He lifted his knee from the water, showing it was leech-free.

Hesitantly, the rest of us stepped into the freezing water, wading across. A strong wind blew, suddenly, and the currents sped up, swirling dangerously as the water tinted darker and thicker. I moved quickly through it, now, legs tiring as I neared the end. Amai now stood on the sands, hand extended to me as he helped me step out. Grabbing it, he pulled me from the river, and we helped the others get out of the sludge as well.

"How did this even happen?" Genos gasps, as we look over the river. The once clear waters had turned to blood, smelling as putrid as one can imagine.

"This is exactly what I thought..." I trail off, looking at the others. "It seems that we'll be going through a Biblical battle uphill to reach Yolia."


	10. Chapter 9

"What in gods' names does that mean?" Amai asks, squeezing some of the blood from his garments onto the sand; yet, the cloth still clung to him.

"We have more religions in the islands, one of them being Christianity," I inform, ringing out the blood from the white cloth. "And there's a story from it about the 10 plagues in Egypt. I could go into more detail, but the important thing is that a bunch of bad stuff happens to the Egyptians since the Pharaoh didn't listen to Moses."

"And is this bad stuff going to happen to us, now?" DG asks and my brows furrow. "Possibly. I think it was more about it affecting the people's way of life, since everyone was a farmer. Other than that, I don't remember too much, just that the last ones are the worst...we should arrive quickly."

"Let's go, then," Genos agrees. After we all wrung out the edges of our clothes, we tied up the ends of our garments so they weren't too heavy on our feet. However, this just made it easier for the sticky blood to rub annoyingly between our legs and chafe it; but, what else could we do?

Amai stopped in his steps, and we stopped as well. "Do you hear that?"

"No, are you crazy?!" MB asks and Amai scoffs. "Stop being an idiot for a second, and be quiet. Just listen."

Our party was silent, until I finally heard it. "Croaking," Flashy Flash mutters, and Genos turns to me, noticing my eyes light up in recognition.

"Do you recognize the second?" Genos asks and I nod, the word on the tip of my tongue as rumbling shook from behind.

Our party turned around and saw bloodied frogs hopping from the river, forming together into one large frog monster. Well over 400 feet, it was made of multiple frogs stained in a Christmasy green-and-red. It had wide, amber eyes, and a wide set mouth. It let out a mighty roar showing rows of needle teeth and two forked tongues as a swarming horde of flies emerged from its foul mouth.

"That thing is definitely _not_ from the Bible," I inform as we all take up stance.

"We've got to take it down, or else we'll be plagued by it our entire journey," Amai informs, glancing at DG and Genos. "You both are useless, right now. Go elsewhere."

"Hey-!" DG starts, but Genos grabs his arm. "He's right, we're without our gear. We'll see if we can find a weapon."

DG hesitantly retreats behind Genos, as MB cracks his neck. "I'm not leaving, if that's what yer gonna call for-"

"I wasn't. Flashy Flash, can you try to break up the frogs really quick?"

Flashy Flash nods and was quickly off. He raced towards the approaching frog, quickly racing up his body. From the untrained eye, one could only see a white blur cross over the monster's shoulders and torso. The frog monster's tongues quickly darted at him; however, the tongue was only where Flashy Flash was last.

The frog monster temporarily collapsed, with a couple hundred squashed frogs falling at Flashy Flash's feet, but it wasn't enough. The monster rebuilt, angrier than it was last. The hero quickly reappeared out our side, shaking his head.

"Did no good. We'll have to eliminate all the frogs at once," he informs, holding up his hand, a small welt on it. "And, the flies bite." I look at the cloud of flies, eyes narrowing. The frog monster was probably on a temporary alliance with the flies to take us out...

"You guys take care of the frogman, I'll take care of the flies," I inform as the three nod before racing off. In the distance, I could see the sun to begin to set. My brows furrow in determination as I race to the nearest building, quickly scaling up it and hopping up unto the roof.

I glance down, seeing the roof made of stone with a circular chimney in the middle. I walk over to it, peering down through a glass lens.

Inside was a man, strapped to a table. He was gagged, strapped to a table as he was electrocuted as muffled grunts escaped from his lips. I gasped in horror, stepping back from the image, bumping back into something.

I quickly whirled around with a punch, only for my hand to be caught. My eyes glanced up, softening at the figure.

"Death," I whisper, shocked. "What are you doing here?"

"I don't have much time to explain. I'll tell you it all when you get out," he informs, red eyes steely as he passes me my hilt. "You'll need this to defeat the demon."

"Yo-"

Death's hand quickly went over my mouth.

"Don't say his name, he'll be able to see past the cloaking spell I've placed."

He moved the hand away, sighing "Listen, use this when the time comes. Hide it, he didn't send you with it since it's his only bane." I nod and tuck the hilt into a safe pocket in my chest.

His image faltered and I quickly reached out to touch him, but my hand went through his body.

"Don't go-"

"Don't worry, Gina." He was nearly gone when his eyes widened. "I almost forgot!" He shouts, voice fading "Don't go through the doors-"

"What?" I ask, eyes fixating on his lips, but soon nothing was there. I glanced back and noticed now how the sun was teetering on the river's edge and painted the sky a wicked purple.

I step forward to the roof's edge, pretending as if I hadn't just seen Death. The three were delivering attacks, but the frog monster kept regrouping while the flies swarming their vision.

I crack my joints, spreading my arms outward as I feel electricity surge through my entire body. My clothes clung with static against my body as a bubble of electricity formed around me. The swarms of flies soon turned to me, blindly flying towards their death as they hit my bubble. The sound of singed flies, which is a lot more disgusting than I thought it'd be, flooded through the air, as the frog turned towards the scent.

Frogs love flies...how could I be so dumb? I quickly released the electricity and hopped over the roofs to get to the river, a little over a hundred feet away.

"Scarlet!" Amai shouted in anger, "Get back here!"

"Trust me!" I shout back, landing at the river's edge. "Run over here!"

The boys paused for a moment before they stopped fighting and began running in my direction. The frog monster turned, eyes drawn to the figures retreating.

Turning towards the river, a heavy cloud of flies unassociated with the frogman hung over it, swarming about itself and ignoring me. Electricity once more surged through my veins, as I formed a plan in my head.

The three were now right in front of me, breathing heavily. "What do we do now? We're cornered!" MB yelled as I turned to him. "When I tell you to, get down!"

The three exchanged glances, before nodding. I turned to the frog monster, that was now rapidly approaching.

"It's almost here-" Flashy Flash informs, and I nod. "I know."

"It's going to kill us!" MB shouts. "Do something!"

"Wait..."

"We've got to attack it-" Amai argues, and I shake my head.

"Wait..."

"Scarlet-"

"Now!"

The three duck as I squat down. The frogman jumps over us into the pile of flies, mouth opening to catch it as I surround the frogman with electricity. With a resounding SPLASH! coating us all in blood once more, the frog monster dispersed in the water, thousands of froggy tongues jetting up to catch flies. I quickly release the electricity as soon as it hits the water, but the flies had already begun to swarm the frogs. The flies were ripping apart the flesh of the frogs while the frogs ate them simultaneously.

"That's disgusting," Amai sneers, shaking his blue head to free itself of blood droplets. " _We're_ disgusting."

"It was the only way, and we should get going before we're the flies' next meal," I add, as we quickly run back to Genos and DG who were hiding in an alleyway.

"You look..." DG trails off and I arch a brow. "Do you _really_ want to hug me now?"

He pales as I roll my eyes, squeezing the blood from my hair. It was dark now and we were still far from the pyramid.

"We should go into one of the houses and rest-" Genos suggests but I shake my head. "I don't think we should; there are probably worse things in the house than what we'll see."

"What are we going to do, then? Camp out?" MB suggests sarcastically, as Amai shrugs. "Seems like that's all we can do. While I truly hate camping, the demon probably has more maggot-apple tricks in the houses awaiting us."

"I'm down," I add. "We can take turns going on watch."

"I saw a barrel not too far from here," DG adds. "We can burn it for wood..."

"It's decided, then. Let's find a place to sleep," Flashy Flash sighs, as we walk over to a decent alleyway. Genos leaves and comes back with a barrel, making it into a campfire. Flashy Flash quickly rubs the wood together, setting it on fire.

"Who wants to go on watch?" MB asks as I glance around. No one seemed to be volunteering...

"I'll do it," I volunteer, raising a hand. I felt guilty, knowing that it was most likely my fault we were in this mess; unless some random demon wanted to cause chaos and just _happened_ to know about the whole mess my life was in.

Yet, even if the latter option was even plausible, I'd know 100% it was my fault.

"I'll stay up as well," Amai adds, as I shake my head. "You don't have to-"

"I can't sleep if it's not on a goose feather pillow," he adds. "Why even bother?"

I sigh, but soon enough, we were the only two still awake. I sit next to him by the fire, and I lean forward towards the fire, hoping to feel heat; yet, I feel nothing.

Even the fire here is weird...

"You noticed it as well, then."

"Hm?"

"This place...it isn't normal," Amai informs, eyes staring at the fire. "The detail, yet lack of life."

"I did notice that there isn't really a temperature..." I respond. "The sun isn't hot. The only temperature was the wind and the waters-"

"Those weren't cold, either," he adds. "I asked Genos what he thought the water temperature was since he's been a robot for so long. He said the water wasn't hot or cold. He said the wind felt like nothing."

My brows furrow, and I lean back from the fire. "What's your theory?"

"This place feels like a dream we can't wake up from," Amai mutters. "That bastard probably has dream powers and united our brains for it to happen, slowly killing us in the real world. It's not the first time I've been through something this..."

"Wouldn't we be able to make anything happen, then?" I ask, thinking about the man I saw down the chimney. I don't think this was a dream, especially since Death appeared, and I could feel the coldness of my hilt; and still could feel it against my skin now.

"Yes, but I couldn't do anything earlier when I tried to make a bed appear."

"So this isn't a dream-"

"If it isn't, I don't know what it is," Amai cuts off, as realization strikes me.

He's afraid of the unknown.

"Speaking of all of this, how did Genos and DG's bodies become normal; but MB kept his bat and now its metal?" I change the subject, as Amai shrugs. "Don't know. Seems like the guy behind it all is disconnected from reality. Have you gotten hungry or thirsty, yet?" he asks, and I shake my head, now realizing this.

"I only felt pain, so far."

"Same here," Amai's brow twitches, gaze on the fire. In the blink of an eye, he slammed his hand into the fire and I yelped.

"Why would you do that?"

He pulls his hand from the fire, revealing a smooth hand with a few fly-welts on it.

"It didn't hurt. At all. In fact, now that I think about it, those flies didn't hurt after I ignored them..."

I glanced towards the fire, hesitantly placing my hand in it. At first, came pain and I was tempted to withdraw my hand; but keeping my mind on Amai's results the pain immediately subsided. I withdraw my hand, seeing it looked the same.

"It's perception, then. If we perceive the pyramid as closer, it could be even closer," Amai adds, and my eyes widen.

"And if we always see it as further away, we'll never escape."

He looks at the people sleeping at the fire. "With all of us, it'd be impossible to view the same distance. We'll be trapped forever."

"But, if it's based on perception, if they perceive themselves as needing sleep, won't they be sleeping for an extremely long time after all this exercise?" I ask as Amai nods.

"One of us needs to get to the pyramid, now-" Amai suggests as a devious idea floats through my head.

"I'm sorry, Amai," I shake my head as his brows furrow. "What-"

I knock my fist upside his head, quickly knocking him out. If he was unconscious he can't perceive how long it takes.

Walking out of the alleyway, I walk down the street, seeing an abandoned cart. Quickly bringing it to the alleyway, I stack the figures inside of it, before sitting at the head of the cart. I've flown with multiple objects before, how hard will this be?

Building up an electrical current, I imagine the pyramid up close, closing my eyes as I jet through the air, the others unconscious in the cart behind me. This was most definitely one of the weirdest situations...

I hear howls of pain from below from livestock, felt boils grow and fade on my skin in seconds, pass through thunderstorms (that only charge me to go on), hear locusts buzzing, and feel suffocating darkness surround me.

The darkness subsides with a woman's cry. I open my eyes to see myself over the end of the river, at the base of the pyramid. Sirens in the bloodied river clutched at their chest, where baby dolls, resembling real babies, hung limp. It would've been compelling if I didn't know that there weren't any other humans here aside from us.

I land far away from the river, quickly pushing the cart into the gilded pyramid. The others were still unconscious, and I was tempted to put them back outside until the door closed behind me.

"So, you figured it out, huh?" A voice chuckles, and I turn to see the demon, sitting on a gilded throne. The walls were dark, aside from lanterns every few feet. He giggles, turning his head to the side.

"I underestimated you, I'm quite shocked. Humans are quite dumb, after all. So, let me reintroduce this place, then."

The lanterns flared, as the brass chandelier lit up thousands of candles, now illuminating the walls. The whole room served as the pyramid, but all around on the walls were hieroglyph-styled images of types of torture. Yolia was now less tiny and was double the size of a normal person. His body was coated in an inky black, with ridged scars in patterns covering his body.

"Welcome to my lil' ol' corner of Hell," he laughs.

* * *

 **Hey everyone!**

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